


In the Land of the Blind

by yeysal



Series: Let's Be Kings [1]
Category: Gravity Falls
Genre: Aged-Up Character(s), Alternate Universe, Asexual Relationship, Bill is a mess, Bill is also a mystery, Bill is also a scientist, BillDip, Dipper is a scientist!, Dipper is confused and not ready, Fluff, Friendship, Human Bill Cipher, M/M, Memory Loss, Mystery, Older Dipper Pines, Older Mabel Pines, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Science, Science Fiction, Slow Build, The billford is pretty one-sided, cipherpines, did I mention science?, past billford, sort of, there's a planetarium
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-09-07
Updated: 2015-12-10
Packaged: 2018-04-19 15:48:35
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 19
Words: 58,205
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4752044
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/yeysal/pseuds/yeysal
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>AU where Dipper Pines, recently graduated with a Ph.D. specializing in Energy Research, lands a job at the most respected scientific facility in the world, GF-Corp in Gravity Falls, Oregon. However, after an incident involving a former employee of the facility that nearly costs Dipper his life, Dipper realizes there's more to the great facility that houses some of the greatest mysteries in the world. </p><p>In true Dipper fashion, he wants to solve the mystery behind this former employee and why he's trying to sabotage his research. But the more he digs the more questions he has. </p><p>And the more he starts to wonder who the real threat is to GF-Corp...and the world.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Welcome to GF-Corp.

**Author's Note:**

> This fic literally started out as a thought that spurred at 4:30 in the morning on a Monday. It took a little next to a month to complete. 
> 
> There will be small supplements that will be posted with the series as the fic progresses. They're basically little ideas I had while writing that would have upset the flow of the plot. So look out for those if you're interested! 
> 
> I hope you enjoy this as much as I enjoyed writing it. :)

_Welcome to GF-Corp in Gravity Falls, Oregon. We’re not very creative with naming things but this is the wondrous place where scientific research, science fiction, and the occasional conspiracy roam through the inner walls and…occasionally through the ducts of the air conditioning system…_

_Don’t worry, they’re working on that!_

* * *

Dipper Pines, B.S., Ph.D, walked with a bounce in his step as he approached the solid concrete fortress known around the neighboring towns as “GF-Corp.”

GF-Corp. was a secluded facility slightly outside of a small town called Gravity Falls and was said, mostly through rumors, to be smaller than a traditional laboratory. For the world’s most advanced scientific research facility, many expected it to be grander, sleeker, and…maybe a little metallic.

The building itself was five stories tall and it was clear the architects didn’t want to brag to their aesthetic tastes in the design. It was definitely not a good-looking building by anyone’s standards.

But that was exactly the point. The owner and his backers did not want too much attention drawn to the location of the company, but instead had the desire to bring the most intelligent, creative scientists in the world to fulfill their scientific visions.

Or they were just cheap.

Given the research and inventions that came out of this place, it was generally known that GF-Corp was not an easy place to land a job. Luckily for Dipper, his university guaranteed that at least the five top graduates would score a job, or some type of employment, at GF-Corp. That little boost, however, didn’t mean that the applicants could be slack in their applications. The attachments to go along with their resumes were nothing to be blasé about.

First, they required a traditional resume along with at least five years of a portfolio consisting of topics that the blossoming scientists had researched and theorized (a minimum of three hundred pages total). Then, there was the independent field research project of their choice: a thesis consisting of their hypothesis, findings, and eventual conclusion (a minimum of 500 pages and, oddly enough, a sample).

Dipper had to submit his application for hire and complete his thesis in order to obtain his Ph.D. He didn’t have proper sleep for nearly two years and nearly ate _all_ of his shirts.

Needless to say, it didn’t take very long after he sent his documentation for application that he received word from the prestigious and secretive scientific empire.

Dipper had actually squealed his most high-pitched squeal when he received his letter of acceptance. (With the post-script that his report on scientific anomalies and energetic reconfiguration was the most well written and convincing theory that their scientists had ever read). He was actually the only student from his class selected for employ.

Dipper didn’t let it down for over a month, and he persistently annoyed Mabel with how proud he was of himself. And as irritated as she was with him repeating “Can you believe it?! I’m a doctor now, Mabel! A doctor!” ultimately she was elated her brother’s dream was coming true, even if he acted like a jackass.

It didn’t bother Dipper that most of his classmates sneered at the fact that he had a relative on the inside. He would basically be an impression of his Uncle Ford. If anything that fact alone made it tougher to land (and keep) the job but for Dipper, exploring scientific anomalies and uncovering mysteries was something he had been dreaming about doing all his life. The fact that his Uncle Ford also worked at GF-Corp was a delightful perk. Dipper now actually had the opportunity to do the fieldwork and research while making a decent living wage at the same time.

That meant groceries _and_ beer. Yes, jobs were great.

Eight years of college, grad, and post-grad had been a nightmare but Dipper was happy that, at age 25, he was able to get it all done in a relatively quick span.

Now he had to apply all that research and knowledge in his new career as an energy research analyst at GF-Corp, the world renowned laboratory that not only studied the most amazing anomalies that somehow crossed into their dimension, but also--if not a bit controversially and secretly--created amazing inventions of science.

He figured he would probably get some scars. After all, he had to survive it to talk about it, right?

Currently, however, Dipper was finding it extremely difficult to navigate the complex. He’d passed through the secured gate and had entered the lobby, curiously staring at the map he received at his orientation just two days ago. It was hardly helpful.

There were so many departments listed on the directory that Dipper was certain that there was a department specifically catered to the amount of resumes the company received _per hour_.

“Dipper!” A tall, older man approached him with a familiar smile and Dipper noticed he was wearing a lab coat and his hair…well _something_ had gotten to it.

Dipper smiled as he was pulled into a big hug, “It’s good to see you Uncle Ford,” he pulled back, examining the mess on top of his uncle’s head, “What happened? You look like you got into a fight…”

Ford laughed and rubbed at his hair, smoothing the fray down. “Eh, the octopus escaped its cage right before I came out to greet you,” he nudged Dipper with his elbow. “At least it didn’t get to my face! That…ugh, that would have been terrible.”

Dipper wanted to make a joke, but it was his first day and it looked like there were many supervisors nearby. His great uncle was a famous figure here so he figured he probably shouldn’t muck it up too much. “So um,” he said as he looked around self-consciously, trying to look like he was doing something related to work. “Do you know where the Energy Research department is?” He showed his uncle the map of the facility he was given at his orientation.

Ford glanced at the map a little too quickly, “Ah, that’s right across from my sector or at least the one I’m working in now,” he replied, clapping Dipper on the shoulder, “Come on, I’ll show you…” he trailed off as he noticed a security guard who had been eyeing them suspiciously and offered a somewhat cheesy smile and a wave.

Dipper noticed the odd exchange, but ultimately decided to store that away for later as he followed his uncle, “So where do they have you working now?”

“I’m in the Time Anomalies department working on the relation of paradoxes and time continuum,” Ford replied with a bit of edge to his voice. “Dipper, I will say one negative thing about your alma mater, they may be the best scientific school in the world but they will never prepare you for the amount of chemistry and physics you will have to do when working with time anomalies.”

Dipper chuckled as Uncle Ford continued to loosely discuss his work as they walked. He didn’t need to ask to know that his uncle was purposely concealing and glossing over certain details. Some of his work was confidential and he didn’t want to push his uncle into unintentionally revealing what should be left behind the proverbial curtain.

As they slowed to a stop in front of the elevators, Dipper narrowed his eyes he watched his uncle hit the call button for down. Dipper looked back at his map…

He saw no evidence of anything below the first floor, “Um…Uncle Ford…what…how are we going down?”

Ford grinned took Dipper’s map from his hands, tearing it up and tossing it in the trash incinerator nearby. “Because we’re going to work.”

The elevator buzzed as the doors swung open and a now enthusiastic, if not slightly nervous Dipper stepped inside with his uncle.

* * *

Dipper was definitely not prepared for the intense security detail. The extremely tight security floor that was the bridge between the outer face of the laboratory and the underground was extremely intricate. The detail generally involved an eye exam, light reaction, x-rays, and…interestingly enough, a pat down.

It was a tad intimidating.

Apparently, this procedure was done before leaving to the surface and when returning to the labs. No one, not even the owners, was permitted to skip security.

During Dipper’s orientation, his instructors ensured that these protocols, while seemingly excessive, were absolutely necessary to keep subjects contained within the lab and to keep unauthorized personnel out. Interestingly enough, the personnel had more problems with outside infiltrators and the media trying to snag the secrets and hidden gems of GF-Corp.

However, the awe and wonder that Dipper was excited to experience at his new job was slightly thawed when his orientation instructors introduced the deadly reality of the work he would be doing.

Dipper was required to watch a video (which he was later quizzed on _twice_ ), which detailed the protocol should there be a security breach.

An electric, biologically coded, invisible grid stretched throughout the entire building, including the first five floors on the surface. According to the video, every specimen’s DNA coding and makeup was encrypted into the system.

If any specimen escaped, or became a general problem, the grid system would locate the specimen on command at any point in the building and pump it with a nearly lethal dose of voltage. Even if whatever it was survived, a containment guard would be well within reach to obtain it by the time the grid was finished its job.

As a second mode of defense, in the event that _that_ line of defense failed, there was a tracking device engrained in the specimen’s body that would break down the specimen at a molecular level when it drifted out of the safety zone. The only issue with that would be how much damage the specimen would cause before it completely dissolved.

It sort of freaked Dipper out and he tried not to think about it too much as he stared at the faint, pink lines of the grid that were pulsating along the walls of the security floor.

As he and his uncle were given the all clear, Dipper collected his personal items, clipped his I.D. back to his shirt, and joined his uncle at the lobby area.

Ford patted Dipper’s shoulder, “How was your first security detail?”

Dipper responded with a humorless chuckle, “Pretty scary but not nearly as uncomfortable as I thought it would be,” he cleared his throat, “It was still pretty awkward though.”

Ford hummed, “You’ll get used to it after a while,” they started for the second set of elevators, “Every now and then Tats likes to change up the schedule to mix things up but truthfully it never gets any less awkward for everyone.”

Dipper hummed and looked around while they waited for the elevator. Ford had pointed to the real directory of the facility’s floors on the lower levels. The first floor was below the security floor and while it didn’t have many labs to boast of, it contained the living quarters, a medical sector, a rec room, and a cafeteria. Ford mentioned that there were a few areas of the first floor that were being renovated so most of it was still under construction.

Generally, Dipper thought the atmosphere on the lower surfaces was starkly different than the one above. The fluorescent lighting was so bright that Dipper wasn’t the least bit surprised to see a passerby wearing sunglasses.

There were a few decorative pieces of art of the scientific nature lining the halls. Dipper found it odd but figured it gave the place some kind of life as an exchange for having no windows or access to natural sunlight.

Overall, it looked similar to a hospital only…less inviting, if that made any sense.

Five minutes later, Dipper and Ford were on the third level down and it looked no different than the first. Extremely bright and it smelled faintly of mold…

Dipper made a mental note of all the turns they made down the halls and paused behind his uncle as he stopped at a door with the label “Energy Research Dept.” Ford stepped to the side and gestured to the keypad. “Just swipe your I.D here.”

Dipper nodded and removed his nametag, swiping it over the pad until there was a beeping sound. There was a click and the mechanical sounds of the pad transforming into an eyepiece. Dipper glanced at Ford curiously. “Am I supposed to put my face on this…?”

Ford grinned. “It should recognize your retinas.”

Dipper was about to lean in before that “should” made him stop. “And if it doesn’t?”

"Then there's a security breach. Which is why you should know where you’re supposed to be at all times.”

Dipper gulped and nodded. “Noted,” he placed his chin atop the machine and looked into the eyepiece. He waited a second until there was another clicking sound and the door unlocked with a robotic voice announcing the all clear.

Dipper took an excited breath and turned the handle with a push. The door was ridiculously heavy.

The door swung open to a wide room of…a desk…and more paintings.

That was anticlimactic.

Sitting at the desk was a portly looking man who glanced up from reading what looked like a video game magazine. “Oh hey, Dr. Ford! Is this the new guy?”

Ford winked. “Yes, Mr. Ramirez, this is my great nephew, Dipper Pines!” he gently pushed a somewhat embarrassed-looking Dipper through the door. “Dr. Pines, actually!”

Dr. Pines. Dipper smiled gleefully. He had repeated his title over a million times the night he received his Ph.D, while hugging said Ph.D.

Dipper fumbled his way to the desk and smiled. “Nice to meet you, Mr. Ramirez.”

The man chuckled. “No need to be so formal, dude, you can just call me Soos,” Soos snapped his fingers as he remembered. “Oh, um, you got your I.D., there, Dr. Pines?”

Dipper looked at his nametag quickly and handed it over. “Oh yeah, here…”

Soos held the I.D. for a moment while he transferred all of the information on the department’s server. “Alright, you’re all set, dude, so you’ll go through this door here,” he gestured to the door behind them that read **ONLY AUTHORIZED PERSONNEL BEYOND THIS POINT**. “That’s where all the magic supposedly happens.”

Dipper looked back at his uncle apprehensively before giving a thumbs up. “Wish me luck, I guess,” he said as he headed towards the door.

Ford nodded and went to close the door. “Don’t let anything bite you on the first day,” he said just as the door closed.

Dipper nearly paled. What.

Soos laughed at Dipper’s expression. “Oh man, Dr. Ford,” he slapped his big hand on the desk. “That guy is so hardcore! He would joke about his own death if he lived through it.”

Dipper chuckled. “Yeah, he’s pretty awesome.” Dipper looked back down at the door. “Here goes…” He was prompted to swipe his nametag and give another retina scan before officially entering the department that would become his second home.

He let out a breath and walked to the door that would no doubt lead him to his greatest journey.


	2. Tales of Science

_ Five months later _

Dipper phoned in to his assistant. “Hey, where’s that specimen from the Gravitational Department?” He looked over the expanse of the lab on the other side of his glass-enclosed lab in the center of the room. “We were supposed to get that over an hour ago…”

 _“Should be en route in about five minutes, Dr. Pines,”_ his assistant responded from the small desk near the front of the entrance. _“The carrier called, said he got caught up in security again.”_

Dipper sighed. This really was becoming an issue. “If it’s the same carrier as last time, could you just remind him to go through the decontamination room _before_ he tries to go through security? We can’t afford the hold-ups anymore.”

_“Will do, Dr. Pines.”_

Dipper uttered a ‘thanks’ and placed the phone on the receiver. He then went back to his working table, grabbed his pen and scribbled a note about the carrier being late…again. He would have to let Soos know to inform the head supervisor about this.

He only had until the end of the week to submit his final report on his findings for the assignment he was given. He and his team had been analyzing different energy specimens from all over the facility since Dipper’s first day. It was pretty hectic.

But Dipper’s arrival had prompted the most productive five months the department had seen in the last ten years.

So productive in fact, that Dipper’s hard work quickly earned him the title as the Head Supervisor of the entire department as of one month ago. As unorthodox as it was, this was a relief to the lady who worked as Head Supervisor to the Physics Department, who was only filling in until someone replaced her.

Apparently the Energy Department had been through six supervisors in the last ten years. Everyone considered Dipper to be lucky number 7.

Dipper, though excited at first, was starting to realize that the supervisory position, while highly honored and coveted, was more than just a pretty title. As opposed to his former responsibilities of researching whatever was put in front of him as a mere analyst, now he had to actually delegate and supervise. It was difficult at first and he was a doormat for the first few weeks but once he understood the pace and flow of his team, it quickly became routine.

In between research and lunch, and research and paperwork, Dipper would make frequent checks in the main lab where his fellow colleagues would be working on their assignments.

The only thing that made Dipper anxious about the accepting the position was that his colleagues treated it like his funeral instead of a promotion. As if the position were a death warrant. He was vaguely aware that the six former supervisors in this department had either died in work accidents or had been injured to the point of disability.

Dipper tried not to worry too much about that. He was careful with all of his specimens and this would not change because of a promotion. His own assignments as of late had, up until now, been relatively simple and quick to complete. At least Dipper thought so anyway.

Plus he had his own office! Having the privacy and silence made his work easier to finish and thus made him even more efficient; whereas before, he struggled trying to submit reports with the constant staccato typing of fifteen other scientists in the office area of his department.

Despite the nicer setting (he now had two potted plants instead of one), Dipper only spent time in his office drafting reports from his research and catching an occasional nap. He also really needed to bring some of his literature to fill up his empty library.

Daily reports were required by every scientist in each department and Dipper made sure he collected all fifteen to review at the end of the day. He would then draft his own report of the progress made and send it to the head supervisor, Blendin, who worked directly under the owner.

All in all, the paperwork portion of Dipper’s day was a drag. A necessary evil in its own right.

He sighed in frustration as he thought of the paperwork he would have to dredge up from this late specimen.

He was about to call for his assistant again when heard an echoing knock on the glass door to his lab and saw said assistant holding a secured box. Elated, Dipper walked over to the glass two-way compartment that connected his lab to the main working area and pressed the unlock gauge.

The assistant carefully placed the box into the compartment and closed the door, signaling to Dipper to secure it. Dipper complied and unlocked the second compartment, took the box out and, once it was safely set down on the table, he secured the compartment and routinely alerted his assistant to stand by.

Like clockwork, several of the scientists gathered around to see what was inside this very confidential box.

Ignoring the sideshow, Dipper set to work. The box had been padlocked with two codes that had been delivered to him earlier in the day. He was thankful for his good memory because once he repeated the passcode to himself twice the message it was delivered on went up in flames.

That was a first and it scared the hell out of Dipper. It also didn’t bode well for Dipper’s desk at all. He was still chipping away the burn mark the damn thing had left. If that was going to be a regular occurrence then he would need to find a desk protector.

Dipper still couldn’t understand why the security measures taken GF-Corp were so exaggerated.

As he inputted the codes, the padlocks were released from their confines and Dipper carefully lifted the lid to uncover a small, yet sturdy, glass container that revealed to be constantly maintaining a small bulb of blue-colored energy.

Dipper gingerly took the container from the box and brought it to his workstation, setting it under a microscope.

Once Dipper had set to work, the gawking scientists returned to their posts. Dipper eventually turned to his assistant and gave the all clear.

Now, the fun part. Science.

* * *

 

Three hours later the call bell for lunch rang out and Dipper was more than a little relieved that he had come to some kind of stopping point in analyzing the blue specimen.

In all Dipper was pleased. The specimen reacted well to the other specimens he put it in contact with and, at one point, it was sustaining itself without a container. It only needed a radioactive source to siphon fuel from. Once he made his notes, he carefully handled the specimen back to the container it arrived in. Whenthe call bell for lunch rang out, he placed the container in a secured, padlocked cabinet and cleaned up his station.

Dipper hung up his coat near the door and exited from his lab to head straight to his office. The other scientists in his department were already heading down to the cafeteria on the first floor. Thenthe lab was silent. Dipper made sure to secure his lab, his office, and then proceeded down to the cafeteria as well.

As much as he loved his work, Dipper felt a pang of loneliness when he would take the trips down along with his other colleagues. On the way to the elevators, he would observe a group of work friends chatting cheerfully about their home lives and subjects not relating to work while Dipper just hung out to the side like a ghost.

The awful part was once everyone was in the elevator together, his presence was seemingly noted and his colleagues would stay quiet until the elevator opened to the first floor. After that, Dipper would go to the main hall, grab some lunch and eat alone at a private table.

No one really came by to chat with him. Unless it was his uncle if he just so happened to be getting lunch that day, which was rare.

Dipper reckoned life was easier in his lab. There, he had a mission and a purpose. Discovering new things brought him a constant therapy that reassured his existence in what he considered to be an amazing world. As long as he had that, Dipper didn’t mind the loneliness too much until he was pretty much forced to socialize.

He sort of wished he had shared at least some of his sister’s sociability traits. She made friends everywhere she went.

At the present, Dipper considered that the lunch hall wasn’t as full as it _could_ be and walked over to the buffet, grabbing a biscuit and some chicken noodle soup. Quick and easy to eat.

He gazed around the mess hall for a place to sit and gave a relieved sigh when he saw his Uncle Ford chatting with his colleague, Fiddledford McGuckett, from the Engineering Department.

Dipper quickly made his way over, thankful that today’s lunch would most likely have him feeling less heavy than the rest.

Ford smiled as Dipper approached. “How’s it going, Mr. Supervisor?” he teased. “Not running your colleagues too ragged, are you?” He elbowed Fiddleford with a laugh.

Dipper shook his head. “It’s a lot of work but I think everything’s going well so far,” he  sat down, chuckling, “I haven’t burned the whole department down at least.”

A very tense look crossed Ford’s gaze for a moment before he chuckled. “Oh, you probably would be surprised by how many close calls and incidents there were a few years ago in your department, especially after the incident ten years ago.”

“What incident?” Dipper was curious. He knew about the former supervisors in his own department but this sounded different, more widespread than contained to the facility.

Fiddleford spoke up, “It’s a long story. Ford and I are the only ones left who remember it, sort of.” He took a quick glance around before he leaned in and spoke quietly, “Ten years ago, the former supervisor in the Energy Department was in charge of an assignment that was so massive, it required the assistance of multiple departments in the facility,” he explained, “My department was in charge of producing the equipment for the assignment.”

Dipper had never heard word of this before and he wondered vaguely if there was a reason for that, “What was the assignment?”

Fiddleford gave an uncertain glance in Ford’s general direction, “They never told us to _not_ disclose the information right?”

Ford shook his head, a hard expression on his face, “We’ve passed the grace period and after all, it’s been ten years. You and I are the only ones who remember it anyway…except for…well, _you know who_.” Ford glanced at Dipper, “Either way, we can trust my nephew since he doesn’t really have anyone to go mouthing off to anyway.”

Dipper gave Ford a very pointed look to which Ford responded by shrugging unapologetically.

Fiddleford leaned back in to continue, “Well, the assignment in question was…” Fiddleford glanced around once more before whispering, “…to manifest a portal to the dimension where the those strange creatures down below come from.”

Dipper didn’t realize how close he was to bathing in his soup as he gawked, “Whoa…wait, seriously?!” Was there an excited squeak in his voice? Nah…Dipper cleared his throat, “How is that even possible?”

Fiddleford shrugged, “No one knows. The portal was an epic failure.”

Ford filled in, “The project involved everyone from the Energy, Physics, Engineering, and the Time Departments to pull the whole future mess together,” Ford scoffed, “And it got us nowhere…nearly all the people involved save for Fiddleford, B-,” he cleared his throat, “…Fiddleford and I…well, everyone involved in the assignment quit after the incident. Never came back after that day.”

Dipper leaned back a bit so as not to completely ruin his now lukewarm soup and stared, “So… what happened?”

Fiddleford took in a deep breath, “Well, the supervisor in the Energy department…” Fiddleford gave a concerned glance at Ford when he said the word ‘replaced,’ “…he was completely pulled into the portal when he walked too close the caution line. In fact, Ford is convinced that he _walked_ into the portal.”

Dipper’s eyebrows raised, “Wow…” there was a moment of silence before Dipper asked quietly, “…did he make it back out?”

Fiddleford started to nod but stopped himself, he made a gesture with his hands, “Well, yes and no.”

Dipper gulped. He knew that situations like this were rare but the occasional accident was always right around the corner. It was why he was so meticulously careful with everything he handled. Dipper fidgeted with his spoon and waited for Fiddleford to continue.

Fiddleford had set a hard gaze on the table, almost as if he were trying to remember the events, “He came out of the portal speaking some kind of gibberish, and he suffered a serious light exposure to his eyes that left him partially blind for a few months,” Fiddleford shook his head gloomily, “…other than that, I reckoned he seemed to be un-phased from it after the first year. Everyone called him the miracle man. We all thought he’d back to work once he was relieved from the trauma of the experience.” 

Dipper was expecting the twist in the story, “Is…is he still recovering?”

Ford broke in the story, “Not quite,” he responded sadly and made a pointing gesture to his cranium, “Something got tweaked in here, he doesn’t remember the bigger details about his life before arriving in Gravity Falls. Come to find out, when the doctors here at the facility attempted to notify his listed contacts of his condition, it turned out those numbers were invalid.” Ford shook his head and cleared his throat again as he finished speaking.

Dipper could tell there was more to the story than what Ford was telling him.

Fiddleford waited a beat before speaking again, “Any who, his blindness went away, but after that, his eyes maintained this strange appearance. Sometimes his pupils are unnaturally dilated, and some scientists who have been on the wrong end of his pranks reported him having blue, glowing eyes. That’s obviously debatable, but he gets his vision tested and he can still see as well as a person with 20/20 vision, he clears all security tests. Just last week he was here in the cafeteria eating some lunch as if the incident never happened.”

Dipper scaled back, “So…wait, he’s still here? Like still works here?”

Ford sighed, “He doesn’t work here anymore, Dipper,” Ford had that same edge to his voice that Dipper recognized five months ago when he first arrived. “He stays in the living quarters on the first floor because he’s being watched.”

Dipper immediately felt that gut instinct of fear, “Watched?”

Fiddleford nodded, “Yes, well, ‘monitored’ is a more appropriate term,” he leaned in once more, whispering, “Every now and then he has these ‘episodes.’ We suppose it’s related to post-traumatic stress disorder from the incident. One day he was running around the first floor of the underground screaming about how the facility has secret plans for world domination and how there was something under his skin, and then he started poking…” Ford mimicked the motion by harshly poking at his own arm, “…and prodding at himself in an effort to ‘get it out’ as he put it.”

Dipper looked sickened, “How has he not been locked up?”

Fiddleford sighed, “The medical personnel secure him for a few days every time he has an episode and each time he comes back out he’s _slightly_ better than the last time. He’s supposed to check in with the medical supervisor three times a week to monitor his progress. As of now he has an episode…I would say once every…three months or so?” He glanced at Ford who nodded quietly in agreement, “I reckon he’s getting better with every passing day but still, it’s such a shame because he was a pretty young lad when all of that happened,” Fiddleford looked up at Dipper with a thoughtful expression, “In fact…I think he might have been about your age when he was pulled into that portal.”

Ford sighed, “It would be extremely wishful thinking to assume he will ever recover to 100%. The guy used to be brilliant…but now it’s just made him a more of a mess.”

Dipper was quiet for a moment as he let this extremely interesting story process, “Who is he?”

Ford rubbed at his face tiredly, “His name’s Bill Cipher.”

Dipper gave Ford a strange look, “’Bill Cipher?’ Is that even a real name?” Dipper had been working here for five months and he had not heard anyone mention a ‘Bill Cipher’ until now.

Ford shrugged, “It’s what he’s always gone by.”

Dipper glanced around the mess hall, “Does he just…float around the complex unmonitored?”

Ford shook his head, “Oh heavens no! He’s supposed to stay on the first floor of the underground and he’s usually supervised by security personnel 24/7, he isn’t allowed to leave the facility because of his state of mind,” Fiddleford noticed Dipper’s forehead tense in bewilderment, “He’s just too much of a risk. He could expose everything we’re trying to accomplish here and the owner doesn’t want to risk that.”

Dipper nodded. It did make sense. The owner couldn’t have someone who could potentially sabotage the work they were doing. Especially if they had some kind of vendetta. At least the guy was given a place to sleep and medical care down here. He looked up, “How often do you see him around?”

Ford responded after a beat, “I can’t recall the last I saw him other than last week in the cafeteria,” he looked around a bit hopefully, “I hear that sometimes he stays in the rec room during working hours but once people start roaming about, he stays in the living quarters.” Ford then leaned in and spoke softly, “Truth be told, the head supervisor of security, doesn’t really want anyone communicating with him. And that isn’t difficult since Bill rarely speaks to anyone anymore,” Ford gestured to Fiddleford and himself, “Not even us.” Ford gave Fiddleford a look that Dipper recognized as _‘we’ll end the conversation here.’_

And Dipper was right. The rest of the lunch break went without another word about Bill Cipher or the incident from ten years ago. Twenty minutes left of their break and Dipper’s soup had gone cold and tasteless.

Dipper mulled over the story of the former supervisor in his department. Why did no one mention him until now? What happened in that portal and what was the purpose of that assignment? This would drive Dipper crazy.

Right on cue, Dipper’s thoughts were interrupted by his uncle flicking his forehead, “Don’t get any ideas, Dipper,” Ford warned, “Give me a ring when you leave work and we’ll chat.” Right after that, the bell signaling the end of lunch hour rang and the room became a bustle of workers discarding their lunches and making their way back to their departments.

He waved his uncle and Fiddleford off and headed back to his sector once the crowd had died. He was thankful he would be able to get back to his office without getting caught up in a sea of scientists.

Some of those people really needed to take a shower.

Then again, Dipper couldn’t really judge.

Despite the promise of his uncle possibly filling in more details about the little lunchtime story he was just told, Dipper knew it would be very tough to get back into the swing of work with that hanging in his head.

Dipper managed to catch the elevator right as it opened. As he stepped in he was content to find that the elevator had no one waiting in it and there was no one around to-

“Hold it!” A voice called out from down the hall.

Dipper sighed and held his arm out to keep the doors from closing as the person, a blonde man not too much taller than him, eventually made it through the elevator doors, “What floor?” Dipper asked as he hovered his hand over the keypad.

There was a beat while the stranger looked in his direction, “Same as yours, funnily enough,” he chuckled.

Dipper let his hand drop back to his hips as he nodded at the stranger and he let his gaze wander. One of his habits was to check each nametag I.D. for a possible hint at where his elevator companions were heading but Dipper was perplexed to find this stranger was not wearing an I.D…

Said stranger noticed the staring and turned to stare right back indignantly, “Can I help you with something,” the stranger said, eyeing Dipper’s I.D. and then frowning, “ _’Dr. Pines?’_ ” He scaled back then, “Really? Your last name is Pines?” He seemed surprised and bewildered, he repeated, “Pines, huh…” He seemed thoughtful and then a flash of realization lit up in his eyes.

Dipper was taken aback (and a little weirded out), “Um…yes, and you are?”

The elevator doors swung open and the stranger gave him a friendly smile and held his arm out in a gesture allowing Dipper to exit first. Suddenly flustered, Dipper quickly made his exit and turned back to look at the stranger who was still in the elevator. He had a strange look to his eyes behind the probably fake, black-rimmed glasses he wore.

Dipper hesitated…this stranger…were his pupils? …No, certainly not. It was just the look of his faux glasses and the stupidly bright fluorescent lighting…

The blonde hadn’t exited the elevator yet and Dipper, for some reason, gestured to the area around him, “I thought this was your floor, too?” Why did he have to ask? He would kick himself for that one later.

The blonde shrugged with a wide and way-too-happy-to-be-normal smile as he stepped back into the cab, “Recent events have changed the perspective on my mission, so I guess today was your lucky day, _Dr. Pines_!”

Then the elevator doors closed and Dipper stared as the cab sounded as if it were heading back down to the first floor.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next update will be on Friday, September 11. From there, updates will be weekly every Friday unless otherwise noted. 
> 
> As always, comments are greatly appreciated and I hope you are enjoying. :)


	3. Boom

Dipper had run into his fair share of weirdness.

Weirdoes who departed with cryptic messages in elevators had definitely taken the cake at that point. Dipper hung out in the hallway for a few moments as he attempted to process it. _‘His ‘mission?’_ What the hell…

This occurrence actually beat that one guy from his university who was seriously convinced that pizza would become the supreme overlord of the universe. That guy had a surprisingly convincing theory and everything.

Dipper shook his head and started walking, _‘Whatever…’_

He made his way down the halls to his department and absentmindedly went through the motions of swiping his I.D. and doing the retina scan.

Once the door opened, Dipper grinned as he entered the small lobby room where Soos was, as always, reading a video game magazine, “What’s up, Soos?” Dipper greeted as he passed the desk, stopping when he remembered something. “Hey, did you ever figure out the code to that master level in Ro-Bat Wars?”

Soos grumbled, “Nah, man. I’m doing it the old fashioned way.”

Dipper gasped and leaned on the desk, “No way,” he narrowed his eyes in a skeptic fascination, “Are you actually _cheating_?”

Soos made a pained noise and looked away from Dipper’s almost judgmental stare, “Don’t make me feel guilty, dude! That code is hard to break and I just wanted to get to level 15! You know that’s where the interesting story actually starts anyway!”

Dipper broke into a laugh and waved his hand passively, “I’m just messing with you, man, no worries,” he wiped at his eye and turned back to the door to the lab, “Ugh, back to work I guess…”

Soos made an acknowledging sound before turning his attention away from the magazine, “Oh! Before I forget, some dude just called about that specimen that was sent here earlier…well, they told me to tell you that they would have someone pick it up at the end of the day,” he noticed Dipper’s desire to hear an explanation and shrugged, “Something about it…not being stable or whatever.”

Dipper’s face went stern, “It’s not _dangerously_ unstable is it?”

Soos shook his head, “I asked and the guy said as long as it remains in a safe place until he can pick it up it there should be no problems. Basically, he said don’t go poking it around.”

Dipper sighed, “Right...when did they call?”

Soos looked at the clock, “About five minutes ago, I think…it’s weird, I think the guy who called is new or something.”

Dipper sighed again, this only meant more paperwork, “Of course…look, see if you can call him back and tell him to come pick it up now. If it’s unstable I don’t want it sitting around my lab…”

“Yeah, no problem, dude,” Soos picked up the phone, “I’ll take care of it.”

“Thanks, Soos,” Dipper opened the door to his laboratory.

Truthfully, Dipper was relieved because that meant the only task at hand for the rest of the day was catching up on paperwork and making sure the research in the labs was going smooth. A relatively easy task.

The first stop was in his lab where he very carefully boxed the specimen (which was now glowing a furious blue color) and set it on the table to wait for the carrier to come pick it up.

Dipper hung up his coat and set his gloves on the table as he exited the lab. After he secured the door, he notified his assistant that he would be working in his office for the rest of the day and to alert him when the carrier arrived to pick up the specimen.

And now, paperwork. Yay.

Dipper felt a sense of calm as he closed the door to his office despite the promise of a mountain of paperwork he would have to do. As he sat down at his desk, he suddenly realized how tired he was despite the interesting events of the day. The strange story he had heard at lunch…the even stranger person he had met in the elevator. It wasn’t a typical Wednesday that was for sure.

Stretching out his joints, Dipper booted his computer up and started prepping his daily report for the day. All was going smooth as he itemized his impressions of the specimens he researched with his colleagues over the course of the week.

Just another report. Just another day.

Until his computer screen malfunctioned and nearly shut down an hour into his work.

Dipper froze mid-type as his fingers hovered over the keys. Once the glitch was finished he quickly saved his work and waited for any more problems. These computers were brand new, or so he was told…A few seconds went by without an issue and Dipper resumed his typing albeit a bit more aware of saving his work every few minutes.

Then there was an explosion right outside his door.

* * *

Dipper’s entire office shook as he fell off of his chair to the floor. The lights were flickering and there was a loud ringing in his ears as he righted himself to a kneeling position.

It felt like the world had slowed down and he couldn’t hear anything but the ringing. His vision was slightly blurred but it came into focus quickly.

He looked over and noticed a commotion from the way shadows moved quickly in front of his door. As his hearing returned, he registered the sound of the alarms going off.

Then the realization kicked in.

Dipper quickly rounded his desk, cursing as his hip harshly bumped the corner of his desk, and made it to his front door. He had the foresight to test the temperature of the door handle before turning it and opening the door to the chaos that was now his department.

He sighed with relief when he realized that, thankfully, no one seemed injured, but they were panicking in a flurry of white coats and gloves around the center of the lab where, currently, his lab was wrecked.

That was when Dipper let the image of what was happening in his lab sink in.

Through the glass he could see that the entire room was full with thick, grey smoke. As he approached, he hesitantly reached out and ran his fingers over the thin cracks that had formed inside from the force of the explosion.

Judging by the fact the cracks had not reached the outer portion of the lab, Dipper deduced the explosion had come from the inside. He had heard of how durable the labs were in an event such as this…but now he had seen the outcome of its performance.

But what caused the explosion? He stared into the glass, his reflection showing through the dark smoke inside. The only thing in the lab was the specimen from this morning.

Could it have…? He remembered Soos saying the guy who called mentioned it may have been unstable…so why didn’t…

Dipper’s thoughts were interrupted as a decontamination crew and security quickly swarmed his department and evacuated everyone from the third floor to the lobby area on the first floor.

Ivan, the head of security, met them down there and informed the scientists that he had been given authority to give everyone the rest of the day off. Everyone was pleased.

Except for Dipper of course as he would be attending a meeting between Ivan, and the supervisor in the Gravitational Department, Dipper’s _favorite_ person, Gideon Gleeful.

Dipper seethed internally. If anyone landed a job at GF-Corp solely through network connections and no work whatsoever, it was Gideon. His father, Bud Gleeful, had supposedly been pouring lots of funding to GF-Corp and in exchange, GF-Corp offered free tuition to Gideon to the same university as Dipper and a guaranteed spot of employment no matter what his placement in university.

In sum, Gideon was an annoying prick who would probably bring the whole place down if not for his genius team of scientists.

Once Ivan, Dipper, and Gideon were seated in a small conference room on the first floor with two other security guards nearby, the damage control began.

Ivan began by laying out a folder he had taken from his briefcase, “The first thing I want to discuss before getting to the how’s and why’s of all of this is what is being done as of now,” his tone was serious and it made Dipper retreat into his seat a little bit.

Ivan was naturally intimidating and the scar over his blind eye made him all the more intense, “The decontamination of the Energy Department will take a few days, at best, while the team collects samples of anything they find to determine what caused the explosion.”

Ivan glanced at the two scientists, “The next step will be to get the Energy Department back up and running.” Ivan pointed to Dipper as he looked over the paperwork, “Your staff will be given the rest of the week off to relax from this event, and you will be setting up a temporary base at an unused department on the first floor. Make sure to have your requests in so the office management can supply you with everything by Monday.”

Great. There went his weekend. Not that Dipper was doing anything thrilling anyway. He nodded in understanding.

Ivan continued, “So that’s done,” he turned his attention to Gideon while taking out a piece of paper titled _‘Specimen Order,’_ “Now, Mr. Gleeful, the last item to be delivered to the Energy department was a…” Ivan squinted in order to read the small text, “…ah, a ‘an element of radioactive energy’ which as I see here was extracted from the venom glands of one of the dragons contained down on the sixth floor, is that right?”

Dipper recoiled in confusion and interrupted the other man before he could speak, “Wait…that specimen…it looked nothing like what would come from a dragon…and it wasn’t radioactive…”

Gideon sneered but he was again cut off, this time by Ivan raising his hand. Ivan gestured to the paper in his hand, “It says here that the specimen was to be delivered in the morning.”

Dipper nodded, “Yes, but it kept getting delayed.”

Gideon piped up defensively, “And I have a logical explanation for that. The Pyrotechnics Department kept-“

Ivan once again cut him off, “Look here,” he pulled out a second piece of paper which specified the delivery information, “It says here that the item was delivered and signed for at 7:20 a.m. but Dr. Pines made multiple calls inquiring as to its location nearly one hour later.”

Dipper felt that drop in his stomach again. That couldn’t be correct. He never received any other packages other than the one from that morning. And it definitely did not arrive at 7:20. Was it delivered to the right department? Dipper was sure whoever received it by mistake would have noticed the mix-up and alerted someone…

So what did he receive instead?

Dipper cleared his throat and nervously asked, “Was it…was it delivered to the right department, sir?”

Ivan had been staring at the delivery papers with an intense glare, “No. This _was_ delivered to your department, Dr. Pines, but it seems someone else signed for it. Someone not authorized to sign for your deliveries.”

Dipper rubbed his forehead despairingly, “I don’t understand…”

Ivan placed the paper in front of Dipper and pointed to the signature block, “Is this the signature of your assistant or the lobby supervisor?”

Dipper stared at the strange signature and shook his head, “No…I don’t even…is that even a name?”

Ivan took a deep breath and assembled his paperwork back in front of him, “Mr. Gleeful, the whereabouts of your department’s specimen were traced to the basement of the mess hall, it’s safely secured on the security detail floor and we expect you to take it back to your department and arrange for its immediate delivery to Pyrotechnics Department as soon as we dismiss you here.”

Gideon gawked, “How did that darn thing get all the way down there?!”

Dipper was now also gaping, “Wait, are you saying…did someone switch the deliveries on purpose?!” This situation was getting stranger by the second and Dipper wasn’t sure if his brain could handle the confusion anymore.

Ivan stared at the table quietly before turning to Dipper, “I don’t care to speculate but…we’re going to have to treat this as a sabotage on your research, gentlemen.”

Dipper sat back in total shock. Sabotage on his research?! But why? To what purpose would that serve?!

Dipper felt dizzy. Was it an infiltrator who slipped through the cracks of security? How the hell was that even possible with as tight of a security system as GF-Corp had??

Ivan’s voice snapped Dipper out of his trance, “Dr. Pines? Are you alright?”

Dipper shook his head, he felt nauseous and his throat felt dry, “Not really…”

Ivan grunted, “I’m sorry, Dr. Pines, but I must ask you, to the best of your recollection, did you notice anything strange before the explosion?”

Dipper shook his head, “My computer malfunctioned just a minute before...and Soos-uh, Mr. Ramirez had informed me about the carrier in the Gravitational Department that was coming to pick up the specimen so I boxed it-“

Gideon interrupted, “Now hold on! I gave no such order!”

Dipper stared incredulously, “What are you talking about?” he gestured with his hands, “Soos said they wanted it ready at the end of the day! The person mentioned it was unstable and I asked Soo--Mr. Ramirez--to call them and have them pick it up immediately!”

Ivan had pulled out another sheet of paper with a list, “What time did that phone call to Mr. Ramirez take place, Dr. Pines?”

Dipper shrugged, “It would have been after the lunch hour ended…”

Ivan hummed as he traced his finger down the line of itemized data, “Ah,” he found what seemed to be the phone call in question, “A call was received by Dr. Pines’ department but the caller is listed as unknown…”

Gideon beamed at Dipper, “See? It could have been from anyone!”

Dipper scoffed, “Look, the only way I could believe it didn’t come from your department was that Soos said he didn’t even recognize the caller so he figured they might have been new or something…”

Gideon shook his head, “Well I haven’t taken any new people since two months ago and not a one of them is a carrier so, clearly, my department is clean.” Gideon started ranting about the prestige of his department which Dipper promptly tuned out.

Ivan, who had been looking between the signature on the delivery form and the phone call list, was quiet before speaking over Gideon, “Was there anything else unusual that you noticed, Dr. Pines? Anyone suspicious who you noticed?”

Dipper shrugged carelessly, “There was some weird guy in the elevator with me on the way back to my department,” he said as if it were unimportant, “He wasn’t wearing a nametag so I couldn’t tell you who he was. He looked like he belonged in the medical facility.”

Ivan didn’t seem impressed or phased by this new information. He picked up the delivery form and stared at the strange signature, “What did this man look like? This…man in the elevator?”

Dipper thought back, “He had blonde-ish hair, middle-aged I guess, not too much taller than me,” Dipper closed his eyes, trying to remember, “He wore glasses that looked fake and…he wore a red t-shirt and…teal scrub pants…” He looked up at Ivan, “That’s…that’s all I remember.”

Ivan’s lips were drawn into a thin line which only amplified his strong stare, “I see,” he placed the papers down once more and stood from his chair quickly, “Gentlemen, we’re done here.”

Dipper was not expecting that. He thought something like this would prompt a little more investigative questioning but now Ivan seemed ready to boot them out. Dipper pointed to the delivery forms Ivan had now concealed in a folder, “Um…what about-“

Ivan cut him off, “Dr. Pines, I suggest you go home, have a nice, relaxing evening and just forget this whole thing ever happened. This is not the first time we’ve had instances such as these at GF-Corp.”

Dipper stammered out a reply, “B-But the signature…the delivery…the specimen!”

Ivan ignored him and fixed him with a hard stare, “As I said it wouldn’t be the first time we’ve had situations such as these occur at GF-Corp and if it is something you do not think you’re equipped to handle you should reconsider your employment here.”

Dipper immediately shut his mouth. He didn’t want to challenge the Head of Security anymore than what he already did, “I understand, sir.” He and Gideon were then ushered to the door by Tats.

Ivan gave a curt nod and rounded the table towards the door, “The head supervisor will still expect your reports by the end of the week and, Dr. Pines, in your case, I would consider yourself a very lucky man that you were not in your lab when this unknown object went off.”

Dipper paled and stopped at the threshold. _“…so I guess today was your lucky day, Dr. Pines!”_

He felt a small nudge, “Quit holdin’ up, Doc,” Tats grumbled and crossed his arms over his chest as he impatiently waited for Dipper to leave.

Dipper nodded, “Uh, yeah, sorry…” he stammered as he quickly made his way out of the conference room and jumped as the doors closed forcefully.

Gideon was shaking his head, “Well, _Dr. Pines_ , I hope whoever sabotaged our little venture didn’t do much harm to the Pyro’s precious specimen.”

Dipper sighed, he wasn’t in the mood for this, “Look, Gideon, what happened today clearly wasn’t our fault so I don’t want to argue over something meaningless.” Dipper looked around to the surprisingly empty lobby, “Anyway, I was still assigned to examine that specimen…so maybe…when you get it back we need to submit another exchange order.”

Gideon looked thoughtful for a moment before he fiddled with his bolo tie, “I guess I can have Jean-Luc arrange another order when your department is up and running again.”

Dipper gave a terse smile and nodded, “Thanks.” Before he turned and started to walk off he shoved his hands in his jean pockets, flipping Gideon off through the fabric, “See you around.”

If Gideon had anything else to say, Dipper wasn’t in his mind to hear it. He was thrown back to the moment in the elevator with the blonde stranger and the peculiar thing he had said to him moments before the elevator closed.

Could it have been possible that that guy was connected to the explosion?

Who intercepted the specimens and switched them out? Were there more than two people involved? And what of the signature on the delivery forms? Dipper had thought that to be the most unusual.

After all, who uses a triangle with a circle in the middle as their insignia?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Reminder - Weekly updates on Fridays from here till the end unless otherwise noted.


	4. Bill Cipher

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dipper meets and learns more about the mysterious Bill Cipher.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Posting earlier than intended. Another update will come on Friday. 
> 
> WARNING: This chapter contains some non-graphic violence and physical restraint. 
> 
> This fic is essentially finished with about 17 chapters in total.

The next day was pretty quiet in Dipper’s temporary room on the first floor. He had a small meeting with the office supplies department and arranged to have a ‘mini-lab’ set up in one of the newer, unclaimed departments.

Soon, plastic coverings were draped over the tables and boxes with lab equipment were wheeled in. In a few hours the department looked something like a lab.

Dipper spent his whole day Thursday helping the team set up their temporary base.

Once finished, Dipper was stuck mostly doing administrative work and catching up on his reports since his colleagues weren’t around to analyze the different specimens for him to supervise.

To put it simply, he was bored as hell. Replaying the events of the explosion were no longer helping him, and he put his blind faith in Ivan’s security team to handle the legwork of the investigation.

Still, he kept replaying the event in the elevator in his head. He couldn’t un-see the look in the stranger’s eyes as the elevator doors closed. The more he remembered, the more menacing it seemed. It was starting to become frustrating.

In an effort to keep his mind off of it, and his brain stimulated, he spent a lot of time in the rec room playing solitaire and memory with a set of playing cards.

On Friday afternoon, Dipper was on his third round of memory when he heard someone sit down at the table with him, “Mind if I play with you?”

When Dipper looked up, his eyes widened at the sight of the blonde man from the elevator.

The man who probably tried to kill him.

He was dressed in the same outfit from two days ago and his thin arms were folded over the table as he watched Dipper interestedly. He was smiling in a mischievous manner that made Dipper extremely anxious. Dipper also noticed the man wasn’t wearing his fake glasses which gave display to the light brown color of his eyes.

The man looked down at the cards and then gazed up at Dipper, “Well?”

Dipper was gripping the cards in his hands a little too tightly, “You were in the elevator with me the other day.”

The blonde looked questionable for a moment before speaking slowly, “I might have been,” he traced small shapes with his index finger on the tabletop.

Dipper, beginning to feel _really_ uncomfortable, started to gather his cards in an attempt to leave, “So…you know what happened.” He said in an effort to not look so obvious.

The man tapped his fingertips on the table in a strange rhythm of sequence as he watched Dipper assemble the cards, “What happened?” 

Dipper scoffed, “Oh like you don’t know,” he stacked the cards to put them back in the box, ignoring the blonde’s pout, “Who are you anyway?”

The blonde shot him a toothy grin, “That depends.”

“On what?”

“On what the king’s men have told you.”

What. “Excuse me?”

Before the blonde could give an answer, Tats and another similarly sized security guard approached the table behind the blonde.

Dipper watched as the blonde flinched and his eyes grew wide with awareness but he did not tear his gaze off of Dipper. He smiled cynically, “Well…my day’s about to get _interesting_."

“Haven’t you bothered this young man enough, Mr. Cipher?” A smaller man with a thick Southern Accent approached the table from behind Tats and leaned in close to Bill, murmuring in his ear, “We have a few questions for you regarding your recent _activity_.”

Dipper’s eyes widened as he recognized that name from Wednesday’s lunchtime story. _Holy shit._ This guy was _Bill Cipher_?! _The_ Bill Cipher?!

Yep. Dipper confirmed it. Based on what he heard two days ago, he was sure this guy _definitely_ tried to kill him earlier. There was no doubt in Dipper’s mind.

The blonde, _Bill Cipher_ , sighed irritably and leaned away from the man in disgust, “Thanks for the intro, ‘ _Sprout_ ,’” he turned his attention towards the men, “When do you _not_ have questions for me?” He grinned, that mischievous look flashing in his eyes, “And by the way, I’m a little disappointed in GF-Corp’s ‘tight security,’” he held up two fingers, “It took you two days. That’s a little slow don’t you think? I mean it’s not like I was hiding or anyth--”

Things went down the hill really quick as Bill was slammed down on the table when Tats hit him with a few light volts from a taser, “You’ll thank me for this later,” Sprott said, “’Cuz you’re not gonna like where you’re headed.” With that, the two guards lifted a temporarily droopy Bill from the chair and secured his arms and legs.

Once Bill came to he started to resist almost systematically. His patience wore thin when he realized he made no progress, “Oh, come on!” Bill yelled angrily, his voice echoing in the now empty rec room, “You know that stupid trick never works!”

Dipper watched in horror. He felt like he was watching a slow motion train wreck. The smaller man was thrashing about so much that they shoved him to the floor and tased him again, which only quelled his temperament for a few seconds before his energy spiked once more from the adrenaline rush. Something had fallen out of Bill’s pants pocket in the scuffle.

There was a moment when Tats seemed to realize that too much more of the voltage would seriously injure the man and he looked over at Sprott, “Call the medic, he’s gonna need the shot.”

Sprott gave Bill a condescending grin and made the call from his radio, “We’re gonna need that sedative, darlin.’” A pause, “Oh yeah, he’s secure, come on in.”

“What?!” Bill craned his neck towards Sprott as best he could, “No! No, please! Not that! I don’t…” Bill’s words ended on a gasping choke as the air was knocked out of his lungs when the other security guard shoved his elbow into the upper part of Bill’s back.

Dipper looked away and ignored that pang of guilt when Bill’s eyes glanced desperately in his direction. It was difficult to ignore the scene. Dipper watched as Bill pressed his forehead to the ground and closed his eyes tightly.

Once the medic arrived and administered the sedative, the tension in the room became much calmer and the guards were able to remove Bill safely from the rec room to another location.

Dipper released a breath he didn’t realize he was holding as Sprott walked over to him, “You’re obviously a smart man, Dr. Pines,” he pocketed his radio, a threat hanging in the air as he spoke, “I don’t have to waste my breath in informing you to keep what you’ve just seen confidential, correct? After all, that poor boy is extremely sick in the brain. You can see he’s having a hard time.”

The man was by no means as intimidating as Ivan, but Dipper was still aware of the authority he carried, “Yes, sir,” he answered with a much more high-pitched voice than he intended.

Sprott smiled approvingly, “You enjoy the rest of your day, Dr. Pines,” he placed his arms behind his back and walked out of the rec room, leaving Dipper to his thoughts.

Dipper looked at the stack of cards in his hand and back at the door where they had just taken Bill, _Bill Cipher_ , to god knows where. He stood from his chair and considered going back to his temporary office to distract himself with work.

Dipper stopped as he noticed something glinting on the floor in front of the door.

He leaned down and recognized it as the object that had fallen out of Bill’s pocket during the scuffle and picked it up.

It was a gold coin.

Dipper turned it over in his palm and his brows furrowed in puzzlement as he gazed at the strange object.

There were various symbols lining the outer most part of the coin, and, in the middle, a one-eyed pyramid. _The Eye of Providence?_

Well, Dipper found his new project for the rest of the day.

* * *

Dipper was extremely disappointed.

His research on the symbols engraved on Bill’s coin turned up with nothing. A perfect waste of two hours.

What was that guy’s deal?

Dipper was absolutely sure that the guy had intended to kill him. So why did he try to get all chummy with him in the rec room?

Dipper shook his head, “Freakin’ psychopath…” he murmured as he turned the coin over his hand. Unfortunately, it seemed to be just a strange coin from an equally strange (and dangerous) person.

Oh well.

Dipper jumped at the sudden, loud knock on his door and quickly pocketed the coin, “Y-Yes?”

The door creaked open slowly and Dipper relaxed as his Uncle Ford carefully made his way in, “Hello, Dipper...I’m sorry I haven’t been able to check up on you since Wednesday…how is everything?” He glanced around Dipper’s temporary set-up.

Dipper shrugged and looked around, “I guess it could be a lot worse. They think they can get my lab on the third floor back to normal in about two months…but I’ll have to do my work from here in the meantime.”

“I see,” he stepped forward, “Well, you’re right, it could definitely be worse. When news reached our department about the explosion I was terrified that the next thing I would hear was that you were dead…”

Dipper gave him a reassuring smile, “Well…it was a close call.”

Ford took a breath, “Have they told you who they think might be behind it?”

Dipper thought about the scene earlier in the rec room but ultimately decided he should keep that mum for now, especially after the silent warning from Sprott, “No...all they said was that whatever was composed of the specimen that exploded evaporated, leaving no trace of it’s properties. They believe the specimen I was supposed to receive was intentionally switched.”

Ford tensed. “Really? Well that’s strange…”

Dipper noted his uncle’s edgy demeanor, “Yeah…it was.”

Ford placed his hands in his pockets, “Dipper, we never did follow up about the story from the lunch room a few days ago…” Ford then quickly held his index finger up to his lips when Dipper was about to respond, “…But not here. Will you be home for the weekend?”

Dipper considered that, the work he initially thought he had to do wasn’t as needing of his attention as he originally thought, “Yeah, seems like it,” he stretched, “I could use the two days of recharge.”

Ford nodded, “I’ll come by tonight,” he headed for the door, “I have something for you, anyway.”

Dipper’s interest was piqued, “Yeah? What is it?”

Ford smiled as he started to close the door, “Now,” there was a playful tone to his voice, “It’s no fun to ruin the surprise.”

Dipper was in the middle of excited and scared. Ford and surprises were either really cool or really terrifying.

Even so, the prospect of Dipper’s evening sounded a lot better now.

* * *

Dipper was about to work on his first bottle of beer when there was a knock on his apartment door.

“Hey Uncle Ford,” he opened the door to the sight of his uncle whose arms were mostly behind his back. Dipper craned his neck to see, “Um, is this the surprise?”

Ford smiled and brought his arms forward. He was holding a box wrapped up messily in holiday themed paper.

Dipper laughed, “I didn’t think you even owned holiday wrapping,” he took the box and allowed his uncle inside, “Wow,” he tested the weight of the box, “Feels heavy…”

Ford set his messenger bag against Dipper’s couch, “Open it,” he smiled, “Where’s the beer?”

Dipper gestured vaguely to the fridge as he brought the box to the table, carefully ripping at the paper and getting excited when he saw the slight promise of what was inside, “No way!” he smiled as he disregarded care for the wrapping and tore the rest of it open to reveal Dungeons, Dungeons and More Dungeons, his favorite childhood game, “Oh man! I haven’t played this in forever!” He stared at the front and back ends of the box excitedly, “And it’s the 2005 edition! Is that when you bought it?”

Ford chuckled as he opened a bottle of beer, amused and pleased by his nephew’s reaction, “Yes, I figured we could play a few or a hundred rounds,” he took a small swig of his drink, “I think it’ll help get your mind off of the past few days and start your weekend on a fun note.”

“No kidding!” Dipper reached in his pocket for his keys to help rip the saran packing open.

He froze when his fingers grazed over Bill’s coin in his pocket. He had forgotten it was even there.

Ford noticed Dipper’s hesitation, “Everything okay?”

Dipper snapped out of his daze and chuckled nervously and stammered out a few ‘yeahs,’ “I just thought I forgot my keys for a minute there, heh.” He removed his keys from his pocket and sat down at the table, missing Ford’s skeptic look.

Dipper quickly ripped the saran off the box and immediately forgot about the coin, “Oh man,” he ran his hands along the ridges of the artwork of the box, “So cool.”

Ford took a seat next to Dipper and placed his beer on the table, “Now…let’s play.”

* * *

A few hours, a few beers, and a very frustrated Dipper later, the once clean kitchen became a mess of graphing paper taped along the walls and over the edges of Dipper’s bar countertop.

Dipper was giggling in a drunken stupor, “I cannot believe you used that spell,” he fumbled with the die, “Seriously, that was ingenious.”

Ford shrugged, better off than Dipper in the intoxication department, “I played this game for a living when I was at university, won every gamble, undefeated,” he smiled, “It helped buy me groceries and fresh shirts. I also kept it at work for a while and played every now and then with the portal team back in the day.”

Dipper shook his head, “Well, Uncle Ford, you are the legend of legends. Nice work,” he started to assemble the graph paper scattered along the table.

Thirty minutes later, Dipper was slightly sobered up and the kitchen was clean. Ford had taken a seat in Dipper’s armchair near the sofa and the look on his face was somber, almost as if something was weighing on his mind.

Dipper grabbed two bottles of water and handed one to his uncle who accepted it with quiet gratitude, “So what’s up?” Dipper flopped down on the couch, enjoying the slight head rush it gave him.

Ford sighed as he leaned back in the chair, “I wanted to elaborate on the little lunchtime story you learned a few days ago a little more thoroughly,” he rubbed the back of his neck, “Especially in light of what happened on Wednesday.”

Dipper went still and got more comfortable to pay better attention, “Okay…”

Ford pursed his lips, “Well, I guess what Fiddleford glossed over was what happened when our colleague, Bill Cipher, came out of the portal.”

Dipper nodded and verified, deciding not to disclose that he met Bill in the elevator, “Dr. F said he was speaking gibberish.”

Ford shook his head, “It wasn’t gibberish,” he said, “It was Atbash, a very old coding language.”

Dipper stared, “Atbash?” He had heard of it before when he was a kid…

Ford nodded, “I remember writing down what he said after he came out. I was actually reading about Atbash a few days before with him…and I happened to recognize it when he came out the portal.”

Ford sighed and shook his head dismally, “He was an absolute wreck, Dipper. On the outset, you would think he just had severe trauma to seeing…whatever he saw _wherever_ he was, and when I tried to ask him about it as he came out, he started speaking Atbash frantically as if he were trying to explain it,” Ford pinched the bridge of his nose in concentration, “I remember writing it down and I remember it all happened so quickly…it’s all a blur…”

“The next thing I knew, Bill was up against the wall in fear while the security team and a few medics were attempting to calm him down,” Ford looked up, “He kept screaming the same phrase to me over and over in Atbash and his eyes were glowing and were blowing out until they appeared black and then…”

Ford paused and Dipper noticed he was shaking slightly. “At some point, Bill abruptly stopped screaming and went completely stagnant. I thought, in the back of my mind, that the shock of the situation had finally gotten to him but then…when his eyes went back to normal he looked around as if he had no idea where he was or how he got there.”

Ford gulped, “And then…he looked right at me…and smiled,” Ford looked at Dipper, his eyes were glossed over, “Dipper, I swear to you that as long as I’ve been alive I have never been more afraid of anything as much as that look that he gave me,” Ford shuddered, “It was a menacing stare and yet at the same time it was friendly, I’d never seen anything like it. It was…terrifying.”

Dipper was starting to wish that his uncle had told this story when he initially arrived since it was scaring the hell out of him. Still, he was fascinated.

Ford rubbed his face, “Anyway, after that the medics were able to secure him and took him away immediately,” he finished up with, “Everyone that worked with us on the project threw in the towel on the whole facility and they never came back.”

There was a pause as Ford took a sip of water, “Later, I learned that Bill’s eyesight was temporarily damaged from the exposure to some kind of light from within the portal. They ran numerous tests on him to make sure he didn’t absorb anything dangerous but everything came back normal. Security detail and the head supervisor called for the temporary suspension of the project.”

Dipper gaped in shock, “Temporary?” Dipper gave Ford a thoughtful look, “You think they’re gonna try it again?”

Ford shrugged, “I’m not sure. It’s been ten years since then and the origins of the project were kept confidential even from us. Now that I remember, a few days before we went underground, Bill was extremely skeptical and paranoid about the whole thing and even submitted several requests to be removed from it…The truth is, no one told us the true nature of the project. It was a step-by-step project where once one thing was accomplished, we got the next set of instructions…unfortunately, we never got so far to determine our mission.”

Ford sat back in the chair, “If I had known that it was going to be that dangerous…if I had even the slightest bit of warning…I would have pulled the plug on the whole thing. If Fiddleford had walked out with the rest of the team, I probably would have walked, too…but we wanted to make sure Bill was okay before we made the decision to leave,” Ford chuckled sadly, “I guess we’re still waiting…”

Dipper remembered the scene in the rec room and felt a pang of guilt, “What was he like before the portal incident?”

Ford smiled, “He wasn’t that much different, really. A little paranoid about everything, he loved conspiracy theories, and he worked like a machine, boy, in the early stages of the project after we went underground, he spent six days straight without sleep just working on the portal research. I had to drag him to the dormitory,” Ford chuckled, “He was one of the facility’s most regarded scientists, extremely intelligent, and he was one of the only analysts allowed throughout the entire compound with no restrictions. It’s strange to know that he’s so limited now.”

Ford then took a deep breath, “Towards the end of the initial project, however, he started to lose it. What was once one of his silly traits was starting to become a serious issue. He stopped submitting reports and at one point, he _burned_ the ones that I put together for the team since he refused to complete them. He didn’t trust anyone. Not his team…or me. He insisted on doing all his research on his own and eventually he blocked off access to his dormitory underground.”

Ford shook his head, “That day, after we activated the portal, the gravitational pull was intense. We had lifelines securing us for safety, but he was entranced by something coming from the portal and started moving closer to it despite our pleas for him to stop. I don’t know how it happened but the next thing we knew, he was gone.”

Dipper took a deep breath as he listened. His uncle was starting to look really sad as he recalled the event.

Ford gulped, “He was probably gone for about thirty seconds when the portal flashed brightly and, suddenly, there he was. He was standing in front of the portal and he wasn’t affected at all by the gravity and, at first, he didn’t look frantic at all.” Ford’s forehead tensed as he tried to remember, “I remember once he seemed to come to, he looked around frantically for the kill-switch. Once he found it, he shut the portal down. That was when he started speaking Atbash.”

Dipper bit his lip, trying to edge Ford into what he really wanted to know, “So how does that connect to what happened in my lab? The explosion?”

Ford sighed, “Dipper, this is just a feeling I have so you don’t have to take any stock in what I say in it but,” he gave Dipper a grave look, “I believe Bill most likely had something to do with the delivery of that specimen to your office.”

Dipper had thought as much based on where the story was heading, not to mention the way security had handled Bill earlier. “Why do you say that?”

Ford gave a half-hearted chuckle, “Well, for one thing, Bill now makes it his life’s mission to torment nearly everyone who worked in the departments that had anything to do with the original portal. I don’t know how he manages to do it since security watches him like a hawk and he’s not allowed anywhere but on the first floor of the facility,” he sighed, “What everyone thought were just mild pranks turned into speculation that he was purposefully trying to sabotage the work of the departments.”

Dipper had a thought, “Do you think he’s trying to prompt them into abandoning the portal project completely? Because of what happened to him?”

Ford pointed at Dipper, “That’s exactly what I thought at first. But in every delay, we discovered new data and elements that actually advanced our findings from the first incident. We found ways to test the energy of the portal in a much safer manner than what we originally tried.”

Dipper leaned back against the couch, “So why would he try to destroy the work being done?”

Ford grunted, “I have no idea…as of now he neither helps nor hinders the progress. I’ve tried to talk to him numerous times about the incident but he wants nothing to do with me…I don’t know why…”

Dipper had his hand resting on top of his pants pocket where the coin was, “Why doesn’t security keep him locked up? Why do they let him roam about if he’s such a potential danger to everyone?”

“I wish I had a better answer for that but the truth is there’s never been any evidence to directly link him to any of the incidents, but he toys around with security like it’s his job. I truthfully believe it’s the only way he has fun.”

Dipper frowned as he remembered Bill’s panicked and pained eyes as the stocky guard dug his elbow into Bill’s back earlier, _‘I seriously doubt it,’_ he thought.

Dipper hummed and leaned back on the couch, “It’s a little discomforting knowing there’s a maniac freely wandering around the facility.”

Ford gave Dipper a reassuring smile, “Based off my experience with him, I wouldn’t worry too much. Like Fiddleford said, he isn’t allowed anywhere but on the first floor and security usually has a very, very close eye on him.”

Dipper shook his head, _‘Yeah…right,’_ he thought skeptically. Before the explosion, not only was Bill on the third floor with him but, according to his uncle’s theory, Bill was also most likely behind the reason his lab was in a shambled mess.

Yeah Dipper would _totally_ trust security.

Ford stretched and stood from the chair, “Well, Dipper, I think that about explains things as best they can be explained. I’m gonna head back to my dwelling now.” He popped a few joints in his fingers and fixed Dipper with a hard look as he went to collect his messenger bag, “What was spoken of here, stays here, Dipper,” he said, “I know you won’t go off telling anyone but if anyone asks you about what you know about Bill Cipher…you say…?”

Dipper smiled, “Who’s Bill Cipher?”

Ford gave him thumbs up, “Very good,” he gave his nephew a pat on the shoulder, “Sleep well and see you Monday!”

Dipper waved his uncle out after profusely thanking him for the gift and the good company (despite the creepy story that would most likely give him nightmares about work…and portals).

As he closed the door, he immediately fished the coin out of his pocket and plopped down on the couch. He stared at the pyramid in the middle amongst the various symbol surrounding it.

Something clicked in Dipper’s memory that confirmed his uncle’s suspicion that Bill was the one behind the explosion in his lab.

The signature on the delivery forms was an exact replica of the coin he held in his hand…

Dipper sighed, exhausted as he tossed the coin on his coffee table and watched it spin before it landed face up, “Bill Cipher…”


	5. Memory

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dipper plays a card game with Bill in an effort to get some answers. It's not as easy as he thought...and Bill is ridiculously good at Memory. Dipper also receives some surprising news regarding his next project....

_One month later_

Dipper hated being kept in the dark.

More specifically, he was annoyed by the fact that no one had ever approached him about any more findings from the investigation of what pretty much destroyed his lab, and he figured he’d never hear from the Security Department again after his tenth request for information.

It had been a month since the incident that left Dipper and his team on the first floor of the facility for what was now to be an indiscernible amount of time. The cleanup had been an extremely tedious process since the administration (along with security) decided it would be best for the entire department to be gutted, cleared, and rebuilt.

That was extremely annoying news to receive. Dipper had advised his team to get accustomed to the first floor for the next few months.

But his work continued in the long run. There were no more incidents from any of the departments and for a while, it was as if the explosion hadn’t happened at all.

Things had calmed considerably, and the tension that hung around the halls of the facility slowly faded into the background.

Dipper also had not seen or heard of Bill since the run-in in the rec room but he had a feeling that the peace wouldn’t last very long.

Every specimen he received went through extra measures of security, and, even with the all clear, he was constantly nervous about his research blowing up in his face. Literally.

Even so, given his two meetings with Bill, and the holes in his Uncle Ford’s story, he was curious to know what Bill had to say about the portal incident from ten years ago.

So, naturally, as was Dipper’s way, he decided to play with the prospect of another chance meeting. Bill’s origins and entire existence were a mystery, and Dipper was obsessed with solving mysteries.

Mabel always did tell him he liked to flirt with danger for the sake of gaining knowledge.

So Dipper would go to the rec room with his card deck while he waited on his lab work to produce results. When his assistant would notify him that his lab work was complete, he would shove the bit of disappointment away and begrudgingly head back to the lab to finish his work.

After that, it was finishing up paperwork and heading home.

Throughout the day he considered his uncle’s story about the portal project that resulted in Bill being the way he is now. It seemed odd to Dipper that the facility would not have been more committed in attempting to locate some of Bill’s family. The more he mulled it over, the more he considered the facility to be more like a psych ward to Bill.

Dipper was increasingly perplexed by all of it, which was not good for his work.

So he played cards in the rec room.

He had been playing memory for about an hour with two pairs at his side when he heard the doors swinging open. As Dipper had just set down the card he picked up, he didn’t look up from his game right away, but he did register the chatter of other scientists pause for a moment before cautiously continuing.

Dipper picked up another card in his deck and smiled when he got another pair. After he set the cards off to the side, he looked towards the entrance of the rec room just as the doors closed.

Dipper paused, taking in the sight of Bill anxiously shuffling his way into the rec room. He had nearly run into the small table that sat near an armchair.

Bill looked terrible. Like he had woken up from a yearlong nap and he wasn’t ready to function just yet. Dipper figured the medics must have given Bill a considerable amount of sedatives and he felt that pang of guilt again.

Which was immediately replaced by fear as Bill’s harsh gaze landed on him after he had righted himself. Would Bill even remember him?

Dipper’s eyes widened when Bill pointed at him accusingly, “You!”

 _Yep._ Dipper stammered as he looked around while trying to maintain his composure, “Uh…”

Bill bee-lined a bit clumsily towards him and slammed his hands on the table, upsetting his card layout in the process, “You have it!” He shouted loud enough for others to hear.

Dipper was extremely confused and focused on Bill’s angry expression, all he could remember was his uncle’s description of Bill’s eyes, “Um…” he supposed he had to be delicate, this guy seemed a little unstable, “…have what?” Dipper asked quietly.

Bill was about to speak again, but when a security guard entered the rec room he hesitated. “Uh…” Bill’s eyes shifted at the guard and then back Dipper…and back to the guard. His expression made a 180 from angry to sociable as he glanced back at Dipper momentarily before turning to the cards on the table. “You…you have the cards that I have been wanting to play this exact game with!”

Dipper gawked. He wasn’t sure if that was a genius save or a completely ridiculous one.

Bill quickly pulled a chair up and sat down next to Dipper, patting his shoulder awkwardly in a friendly gesture, “Memory, right? Aw, I love this game…” He leaned over the cards and fixed them from where he slammed his hands on the table, “Let’s see…” he said as he flipped a card and made a quick glance towards the guard who was still eyeing Bill suspiciously, “Hmm…” he looked back at the flipped card, an ace, and flipped it back, “Such a fun game…”

This was tense. Dipper noticed the guard was eyeing _him_ now and haphazardly decided to play along. He didn’t want to witness _another_ episode with Bill being carted off, and he wanted the guy to answer the questions that had been nagging in his brain for the past month. “Yep…fun game,” Dipper said as he gave the guard a reassuring smile.

Bill ignored Dipper as his hand hovered over the layout, he selected another card, another ace and set the pair aside with a smile, “What fun!” He looked over at the guard and waved, “Care to play, sir? It’s a lot of fun!” He flashed the guard a toothy, friendly smile.

The guard frowned and gave Bill a warning look as he walked out of the rec room.

Bill sighed grouchily as he flipped another card, a king, “Always with the semantics,” he mumbled while selecting a new card, another king. He put the pair to the side and looked at Dipper, “Give it back…” he looked at his stack of pairs, “…please.”

Dipper realized they were back at square one, albeit a bit more quietly and without the promise of potential violence, “Really, I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Dipper watched Bill select another pair _without even looking at the deck_ , “Geez, how are you doing that?”

Bill ignored him again, “Don’t lie. You have to have it…”

Dipper was about to argue again when the distressed look in Bill’s eyes made Dipper recall the object that he had dropped when Bill was being restrained by security a month ago.

The gold coin.

Dipper felt absurd and guilty, “Oh…um, sorry…yeah, I have it…but it’s at my apartment…”

Bill whined hopelessly as he selected two more cards, “I need it back…” _Another pair. What the hell…_

Dipper put his hands up defensively, “I can bring it back tomorrow,” he attempted to quell what looked like the rising despondency from Bill, “I promise.”

Bill selected another pair from the deck and Dipper was growing dejected at his chances at a turn at this point. Bill didn’t seem to notice, “It’s important.”

Dipper looked at Bill, “Why?”

Bill set him with an intense stare, “Because it’s mine.”

Dipper felt a little bit of fear in his gut but nodded in understanding, turning his attention back to the card game. Only six cards were left. Dipper sighed and attempted to make some kind of peace, “Look it’s no fun if you keep…getting all the right pairs…”

Bill smirked, “Isn’t that the point of memory?” he mocked, “To _remember_ where all the cards are?” His eyes widened momentarily at his emphasis on the word ‘remember.’

Dipper gave an unimpressed laugh, “The cards might as well be facing up for how well you’re playing.”

Bill laughed loudly as he put away the last pair, “Thank you!” He folded his arms over the table, “Let’s play again.” He started tapping his fingers rhythmically like last time.

Dipper gestured to the cards piled up next to Bill, “Let me shuffle them,” he offered as he reached over to drag the cards to his side of the table. Dipper pretended not to notice the narrowed look in Bill’s eyes as Dipper shuffled the cards a few times.

However, after an intense minute when the blonde refused to look away, Dipper caved, “Why are you looking at me like that?” He started to lay the cards out, “It’s creepy…”

Bill’s frown transformed into a smile and he kept tapping his fingers in that strange sequence. _Was it…Fibonacci?_ Other than that, he stayed silent.

Dipper groaned tiredly and shook his head, “I’ll go first since…I probably won’t get another turn after yours.”

Bill chuckled and gestured for Dipper to go forward. Still tapping.

Surprisingly enough, Dipper found a pair on the first turn by pure instinct…or luck, “Nice,” he said under his breath as he returned to the deck and picked up another card, a jack.

Bill was still quietly tapping his fingers as Dipper turned his cards. Dipper thought it strange and subconsciously noted the number of taps between each beat. It wasn’t Fibonacci…but it was definitely something.

Dipper swore under his breath as he picked up a king, “So much for that streak,” he flipped the cards back.

Bill stopped the tapping and looked thoughtful for a moment, “Is it considered a streak if you only picked up one pair?”

Dipper rolled his eyes at how the question was asked, “Whatever,” he said as he gestured over the deck, “Your turn.”

A small grin crossed Bill’s features as he rubbed his chin, “You have so many questions,” he mused as he overlooked the layout.

Dipper followed Bill’s gaze over the deck before looking at him again, “I’m pretty sure you tried to kill me,” Dipper admitted, breaking the ice over that conversation, “So yeah, I have a lot of questions.”

Bill flipped a card over dismissively, a ten of clubs, “I did no such thing,” he replied, seemingly offended, “I’ve never harmed a single soul…directly at least…”

Dipper rolled his eyes, “Oh yeah,” he said sarcastically, “I’m sure you meant for whatever that specimen was to detonate when no one was working on it…” He watched in awe as Bill picked up another ten of clubs from the deck, “I also really want to know how you’re playing this game so flawlessly.”

There was no hesitation in Bill’s movements as he picked another pair just as quickly as the first, “I’m really good at memory. And what if I _meant_ to have it detonate without hurting anyone? What do you say to that?”

“I still say you’re a potential psychopath. Why would you do that anyway?”

Bill laughed, but it came out softer than a whisper. He didn’t answer Dipper’s question, instead he paused over the deck and considered picking up one card to match the queen he had flipped, hovering his hand over a card at the edge before deciding on the card to the right, a jack.

Dipper was honestly surprised and looked at Bill suspiciously, “You picked the wrong one on purpose, didn’t you?”

Bill shook his head unconvincingly. “Nope…” he leaned back in his chair, staring at the two mismatched cards, “I’m just not as good as you thought I was.” He hovered his hand over the two cards before he flipped them back over and glanced at the clock in the room, “Say,” Bill stared at the clock, “What’s your most favorite painting on the first floor?”

Dipper gave Bill a strange look, “Um…I don’t know…I don’t really pay attention to them…”

Bill hummed as he shifted his gaze over the card deck, “Most of them are junk. But there are a few gems here and there. You should pay attention to them more. Find one you like and let me know which one it is.”

Dipper flipped over a card curiously, “Why do you want to know that? What do you get out of it?”

Bill shrugged with a crooked smile, “What can I say? I may have fallen from grace as a scientist, but I still like to discuss the arts.” There was a moment of silence between them before Bill muttered, “It’s getting a little late,” he said in a patronizing tone, “Don’t you have work to do?”

Dipper checked his watch, “I have twenty minutes before my samples are ready. We can finish this round.”

Bill stared at the set of cards, tapping his fingers again, “Do you promise to bring it to me tomorrow?”

Oh yeah. Dipper had forgotten about the coin…again. “Yeah. Do you want to meet me here in the morning before the shifts start…I usually get here at-“

Bill abruptly cut him off by standing from his chair, “I’ll find you,” he started flipping the cards over in their respective pairs, looking at Dipper after he was finished, “There, round’s done. I win.”

And with that, he rushed out of the rec room without another word.

Dipper looked down at the cards, still curious as to how Bill could know where every pair was in the deck…

It was fascinating…and kind of creepy.

As soon as Dipper started collecting the cards his radio went off. His samples were ready.

Ahead of schedule.

Dipper looked back at the doors and down at deck of cards in his hand. Something was off. A missing link.

Bill was definitely a mystery he wanted to solve.

* * *

Work had piled up in the next few days in Dipper’s department. He was a little nervous when he received a confidential package from Blendin himself. He was instructed to examine the specimen routinely and to introduce it to a radioactive frequency. Dipper was a little concerned on the outset, but paled when he saw the specimen he would be examining in question.

It looked exactly like the specimen that had detonated in his office.

With great care Dipper did as instructed and was relieved when nothing was annihilated. All that was left was to submithis reports.

After Dipper submitted his findings on his samples, and the rest of his team’s reports, he was in office writing out the number sequence he heard Bill tapping out in the rec room from a few days ago.

_3-12-5-22-5-18-13-1-14_

Dipper chewed on his pen as he tried to remember the last few numbers that Bill had tapped out while he was playing his turn…

_23-1-14-20-20-15-16-12-1-25_

Dipper sat back and looked at the numbers. They definitely were not Fibonacci…or any other number sequence he had heard of. Was Bill even aware that he was doing that?

Before Dipper could investigate further, his phone rang. He picked it up after the second ring, “This is Dr. Pines,” he answered with his most practiced, professional voice. He smiled proudly.

“Dr. Pines,” Blendin greeted cheerfully over the telephone, “Good afternoon, I hope I haven’t caught you at a bad time?”

Dipper straightened up, not expecting a call from the head supervisor, “Um, no not at all,” he stammered as he shoved the number sequence aside to put his report in front of him, “I just sent you my report from today, did you receive it?”

“Yes, I just read it and I must say I’m pretty impressed with the progress you’ve made in your research on these energy samples we’ve been sending you. Especially since you don’t have an office at the moment.”

Dipper smiled, thankful that his work was being appreciated, “Well, energy and its related anomalies was part of my thesis at the university so…I guess the passion helps the work.”

Blendin made an agreeing sound, “Yes, I was particularly interested in how you theorized possibly configuring energy to act independently of itself…it’s why we sent you that last specimen. I’m reading your report on the matter, but I’m interested to hear how you came to such a finding.”

Dipper stammered and leaned back, “Well, it’s just a theory,” he responded nervously, “But in my research I noticed some of the samples you’ve sent me behaving independently without any assistance from what was supposed to contain it,” he picked up a copy of his most recent report. “In fact, the report I sent you today has impressions on the most recent specimen. It was able to sustain itself for five minutes without any assistance...”

Dipper placed the report down, “But it fizzled out quickly and it was revived by the radioactive generator. Essentially, to keep it going without issue, it would need to siphon energy from a similar source…if we don’t have that source, it would need to be connected to a radioactive generator.”

There was a small beat of silence before Blendin spoke again, “Well, Dr. Pines, in light of the recent findings from various departments, our owner has asked me to put together a conference next week to discuss the next big project for GF-Corp. We’d like you to participate.”

Dipper nearly fell out of his chair, “Wow, really?” Dipper backpedaled his excitement a bit, “I mean, yes, I would be happy to participate…I’m always eager to broaden my research…”

Blendin cleared his throat, “Yes,” he sounded like he wasn’t even listening, “The meeting is to remain confidential. You will meet with the attendees of this meeting at the fifth floor of the elevated facility. That’s above ground. Once there, the rest is in the future.”

Dipper rolled his eyes, this guy was always so cheesy and weird, “I understand. Is there anything else?”

“This conversation didn’t happen, Dr. Pines." There was a click and the line disconnected.

Dipper stared at the receiver strangely before setting it down, _‘Okay…,’_ he thought as he looked at his most recent report which was sitting next to the number sequence.

This week was certainly an interesting one after a month of quiet. He had played cards (one-sidedly) with Bill, a potential murderer, in the rec room and Dipper had been placed on the possibly biggest project of the year.

Dipper hoped for a raise…

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Can you figure out Bill's tapping code? ;D ((PS: it'll be disclosed later~))
> 
> Comments are always appreciated. Thanks for reading~ :)
> 
> See you soon.


	6. Voices

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dipper’s next work project is revealed. He also finds a painting that he likes in the facility and he becomes increasingly puzzled by Bill's behavior to the point where he begins to question his own sanity.

The following day, Dipper sat in the rec room with his cards in front of him. He hadn’t decided on what game he wanted to play but the only fun ones that came to mind required two people.

Speaking of which…Dipper was starting to wonder when Bill was going to show up to get his coin. Dipper had promised to return it but despite the blonde’s adamant pleas to get it back, he certainly wasn’t making the effort to retrieve the object.

Dipper idly wondered if Bill had gotten in trouble with security again. He shuddered at the thought.

In any case, the hours passed and Bill never showed up anywhere throughout the day. The same would happen the next day.

And the next day.

And the next.

For safekeeping he kept the coin in his office and made sure he had it in his pocket every time he was out and about the facility. Just in case.

The days dragged by and Dipper eventually resigned to the fact that he would probably not be seeing Bill for a long while. He tried to quell the disappointment. He was, albeit subconsciously, also starting to notice the paintings on the first floor a bit more often since Bill had asked about them.

And to his surprise, he actually found one that he liked. It was down one of the mostly unused hallways and it was the only painting that hung on the wall.

It was of a wooded area with a lake during nighttime. The sky was full of stars and they reflected in the lake. Pine trees lined either side of the lake which gave way to a point perspective of the full moon high in the sky.

It reminded Dipper of where he and sister used to spend their summers with their uncle Stan.

He found himself making little trips to take a glance at the painting when he quickly decided that this one was his favorite.

* * *

The day of the meeting was upon Dipper before he knew it and he stayed in his office most of the day prepping for the big conference at 4 PM. Once he felt like he knew the subject of his research backwards and forwards, he decided to relax by going down to the rec room once more.

At this point it was just a method of therapy and definitely not a whimsical fancy to hopefully seeing Bill there.

That’s what Dipper told himself anyway. He just wanted to give the guy his coin back.

And possibly ask him a million questions about the portal incident, should he ever find the bravery to bring it up.

To Dipper’s luck, and as fate would have it on this particular (very important) day, Bill just so happened to already be sitting in the rec room at the table Dipper frequently sat at.

Dipper entering the room seemed to have alerted Bill to his presence as the blonde turned immediately and grinned in his direction, waving him down eagerly.

Dipper noticed that Bill had his own deck of playing cards.

Bill’s gaze followed Dipper as he took a seat in his usual spot, “Well, hello, friend,” he greeted airily, “Did you miss me?” A teasing grin played across Bill’s face.

Dipper really wanted to punch it, but opted to take the higher road. “Hey…you got your own deck, I see.”

Bill flashed him a proud smile. “You’d be surprised at how many luxuries I can actually afford here,” he winked, “When the right people aren’t paying attention.”

Dipper sighed irritably at the prospect of Bill getting into needless trouble, “You know I bring my own deck.” He took his own card deck out of his pocket and set it on the table. “Why risk the trouble with security? Especially after last time…”

Bill sneered, “Oh please, those brutish morons won’t be so uptight over a simple pack of playing cards,” he began shuffling the deck. “And not that it matters to you, but I asked for these politely.” Bill cleared his throat and leaned in, murmuring, “And I haven’t forgotten about my coin….”

“Oh!” Dipper remembered as he fished the coin out of his pocket, sliding it over to Bill, “What is this thing anyway?”

Bill swiped it off the table and analyzed it, possibly for any damage, “It’s obviously a gold coin, _Dr. Pines_.”

“Well, I know that!” Dipper didn't appreciate Bill’s condescending tone, “But what about the symbols?”

Bill rolled his eyes as he glanced at Dipper, showing him the face-side of the coin, “Do you really think _I_ know what these mean?”

Dipper leaned forward on the table curiously, “But…I figured you’d know since…well, it’s obviously very important to you…I thought you’d know-”

Bill cut him off with a thoughtful hum and placed the coin in his pocket, “So…shall we play the memory game?” He placed the freshly shuffled cards between them.

Dipper took that as a cue that Bill did not want to discuss the coin any further, much to his dismay. Oh well, he figured he’d weasel it out of him eventually. For now, Dipper figured he’d play along. He pursed his lips in thought, “How about Go Fish?”

Bill gave him an incredulous look, “Really?”

Dipper nodded, “I haven’t played that one in a while and I could use the mindlessness, honestly.”

Bill chuckled and Dipper saw that mischievous flash in his eyes again, “’Mindlessness,’” he cracked his knuckles, “I’ll just keep the stack near me, then. Since I’m obviously going to just collect them all in the end.”

Dipper smiled cordially, “You could at least give me a chance, here,” there was an unspoken message in Dipper’s statement that subtly asked Bill to trust him, not that Dipper would expect the blonde to catch it. He grabbed the stack and dealt them five cards each, setting the remaining pile back between them.

Bill fanned his cards out and grinned, “Oh, I’ve given you plenty chances. You just haven’t figured it out yet.”

Dipper glanced at his own cards, making sure to keep them tightly together so there was no chance of Bill seeing through them. “Figured what out?”

Bill ignored him and held his cards up to his face so that only his eyes peeked over, “Do you have an ace?”

Dipper sighed miserably and gave him the card from his hand.

This was going to be a terrible game.

* * *

Dipper soon realized that Bill was, in fact, a monster. Their game lasted all of five minutes and Bill had collected all of his cards. Dipper couldn’t even draw two pairs from the deck between them. He shook his head at the sight of Bill beaming at his collection of pairs.

Bill chuckled as he grinned at Dipper, “Well, that was fun.”

“Is there any card game that you’re not good at?” Dipper groaned. He was actually surprised at the level of strategy Bill had applied to the seemingly simple game.

Bill started collecting the cards, “Probably not!” He started to shuffle them, “How about another game? Maybe one that I’ve not played before…?”

Dipper was about to nod but he hesitated and checked his watch. It was 3:20 PM.

Damn. “Actually I have to get going. I have a really important meeting at four that I can’t miss.” Dipper mentally smacked himself after he said it and he hoped that Bill wouldn’t prod him about it since Blendin specifically told him it was confidential.

Bill stopped shuffling for a moment, “Really?” he sounded skeptical. Then his expression became thoughtful as he finished with the cards, “Interesting…”

Dipper’s shoulders relaxed a bit as he looked at Bill curiously, “Yeah…” he stood from his chair. Time to change the subject. “Well, you got your coin back. I guess I’ll see you when I see you.”

Bill nodded slowly and tapped the deck on the table, “Maybe…” he spoke softly, “Oh…did you find a painting like I asked…?”

Dipper spaced out for a second before he remembered the forest painting with the night sky, “Oh…yeah, actually, I did.” Bill gave him an expectant look and he coughed, “Um…there’s this picture of a forest at night in the development area that’s pretty cool, I guess…it’s different.”

Bill grinned almost knowingly, “Yeah? I think I know it…I don’t go down there too often but it is one of the only places where security doesn’t have all their eyes so…”

Dipper saw that look of mischief, “Don’t get any ideas, Bill,” he chuckled and turned to walk out, “Just…stay out of trouble until we can meet again, yeah? Maybe we can play another card game.”

Bill’s lightened up, “Sure. But I can make no promises.”

Dipper shook his head with soft chuckle as he headed for the door.

He also couldn’t help but notice the spark of disappointment in Bill’s eyes.

* * *

Dipper, of course, was the first to arrive to the conference room where the meeting would take place. He had arrived about fifteen minutes earlier than expected and quietly cursed himself for being so anxious about being late.

However, once he noticed the giant windows showcasing the landscape outside, Dipper zoned in on the view.

Dipper missed seeing the outside world before the sun went down. He was down below ground most of the day and he rarely got to see natural sunlight or the outside in general. The facility was out in a secluded area so most of what he saw was an expanse of trees, but in the distance he could see the town of Gravity Falls just a few miles away. He tried to find his apartment complex. 

Instead, his mind kept tracing back to he and Bill’s card game from earlier as he gazed over the horizon. Bill had mentioned giving Dipper ‘plenty of chances’ and that Dipper hadn’t figured it out yet…what did he mean by that?

A familiar voice interrupted Dipper’s thoughts, “Well, I shouldn’t be surprised! You know, they would be idiots if they didn’t invite you to the party!”

Dipper grinned as he turned around to face his Uncle Ford, “You don’t think they’d be overestimating me, do you? I mean…a promotion…being assigned to a big project…seems like a lot for a new guy…”

Ford scoffed, “Absolutely not. You’ve been working hard. From what I’ve heard you’ve made that department more productive than it’s ever been in ten years. It’s a good thing, really.” Ford paused as he looked around the room, “Seems like it’s going to be a small conference…”

Dipper pulled out a chair for the both of them and sat down, “So did they tell you what this was about? They didn’t tell me much…”

Ford shook his head, “All project meetings are typically kept confidential to avoid spreading rumors,” he leaned down to whisper, “Many departments don’t get a lot of funding and if some departments are favored over others it can cause a bit of dissension in the ranks, so to speak.”

Dipper nodded in understanding, “Well, either way, this should be interesting. At least we may get to work together.”

Before Ford could respond, Fiddleford entered the room, “Well, I’ll be,” Fiddleford greeted with a smile, “This won’t be as cumbersome as I imagined it would.”

Ford chuckled as Fiddleford took a seat, “Yes, it seems they picked the right brains for this project, right?”

The once empty room became much lighter with Ford and Fiddleford there. Dipper listened as the two lightly discussed their day and made jokes about what to do with the rest of their week, now that it was closing on an anticipated high note with the announcement of this new project.

Then the asshole walked in.

“Well, my my,” Gideon Gleeful greeted as he and his father both walked through the threshold, Gideon fiddling with his bolo tie and gazed at Dipper, “I didn’t expect Dr. Pines the Younger to be included in this meeting, what with the unfortunate situation of your lab being obliterated. Tell me, Dipper, what’s it like to work along side the common departments?”

Dipper groaned and pinched the bridge of his nose, “Seriously, man? Why do you-“

He was interrupted by Ford nudging him sharply, “Dipper!” his uncle warned, “Just let it be,” he regarded Bud Gleeful with a careful eye as the older man sat down in the corner, “This is a fight you don’t want to pick at.”

Dipper vaguely understood that this had to be about the funding the man poured into the facility. Another mystery Dipper would love to investigate.

Gideon sat down across from them, “Seems there is a brain in the Pines family,” he remarked with a mocking grin before whispering, “And it’s not yours, Dipper.”

Dipper just seethed in his spot and looked away, _‘How the hell am I going to work with that asshole…’_ he thought to himself.

_YFIM SRH GRV_

Dipper jumped and turned to his right where it sounded like someone just whispered into his ear. There was no one. He looked back at his Uncle Ford, “Did you hear that?”

Ford gave him a curious look and shook his head, “What? What did you hear?”

Dipper was confused, “I-I don’t know…it sounded like…” he shook his head as he tried to remember what exactly was said, “It sounded like…”

“Good afternoon, gentlemen,” Blendin’s voice pierced the air as he entered the room. Ivan followed close behind him and made sure the doors to the conference room were shut, “I’m glad to see you were all able to make it.”

Everyone in the room, Gideon, Ford, Fiddleford, and Dipper (and Mr. Gleeful) greeted Blendin quickly, allowing Blendin to formally introduce himself. “Well, as you all know,” the balding man began, “You’ve all been given special assignments for the last few weeks, and I can see in the reports that all have been completed timely and very effectively. That’s exciting.”

Gideon beamed with a small hum as he sat back in his chair in a relaxed manner and Dipper tried to ignore it but he really wanted to punch him in the face.

_HVXZOVLSH HRS VRGMF_

Dipper’s eyes widened as he heard that whisper again. It was like an echo…not quite next to him but loud enough to seemingly penetrate the air and make Blendin’s voice sound like a mumble. _‘What the hell…’_

“Dr. Pines,” Blendin’s voice jarred Dipper back to the meeting, “Are you alright?”

Dipper nodded quickly, “Y-Yes, sir, sorry,” he rubbed at his ear anxiously and hoped whatever sound he heard was just his ears ringing from adjusting to the new height.

Blendin cleared his throat and held some papers up in front of him, “As I was saying," he fiddled with the pages, "Ten years ago, and I understand that two of you remember, a selected team tried and nearly succeeded at activating a portal the dimension that is, for some reason, originating in this location,” Blendin face drew a somber look, “Unfortunately, the assignment was a failure and not every one was lucky to make it completely unscathed. Our former head of the Energy Department was overexposed to the energy contained in the portal and, even though he survived, it has left him in a seemingly deteriorating mental state.”

Blendin paused as he flipped the next page, “We’ve done our very best ever since then to help aid this man back to health and we will continue to do so until he is back to full speed. But the work must go on, and the assignments given to you were to determine if what happened ten years ago could be amended and done in a much safer way.”

Dipper felt like his heart dropped in his stomach…

Blendin smiled, “The research and findings that your departments have done confirmed this and as such, we have decided to reactivate the project. Isn’t that great?”

The whole room stayed silent save for Gideon and Bud who nodded in agreement. Dipper glanced at Ford who seemed to having trouble keeping his anger emotions in check.

Blendin noticed the awkwardness and set his papers down, “This order comes from the very top and we are thrilled to restart the project. “ He looked at Ford expectantly, “Do any of you have any questions?" 

Ford spoke up immediately, “Um, yes, are you absolutely insane?!”

Blendin didn’t look surprised, but the intensity in Ford’s voice seemed to jar him, “I’m sorry…?”

Ford stared incredulously, “You must be joking, right?! I mean, everyone knows what happened ten years ago! Like you said, the project was a failure, and it wasn’t just because of our colleague getting pulled into the portal, the damn thing could have taken the whole facility out! How is anything that we’ve found in the last ten years able to tell you that restarting that monstrosity is a good idea?!”

Blendin pursed his lips as he displayed an open posture, “I can understand your harsh feelings towards the project, Dr. Ford…but I believe you’re letting your personal feelings get in the way…you can trust that we wouldn’t restart the project unless we knew for a smidgen of certainty that it wouldn’t be a safe thing to do. This is why we’re recruiting a smaller team to organize the project. And I haven’t even disclosed the final part…”

Ford leaned back and gestured with his hand, “And what’s that?”

Blendin stood straight, “Well, since you worked first hand at the site of the activation of the first portal, and saw your colleague get pulled into it, we determined that you would be the most sensible person to act as the head supervisor of this project.”

Ford gaped and shook his head, “No. If that’s the case, as head supervisor of this project, I say to hell with it, it can’t be done.”

Blendin’s face went stern and he rounded the table to sit near Ford, “Dr. Ford,” his tone was severe, “These are not my orders but the orders from the owner himself. Now, you’re an extremely intelligent man, and even more so on this matter since you know what it means to fix your mistakes. I would hate to inform him or the ones funding this project about your lack of interest since it appears he wants no one else but you to lead it.”

Ford narrowed his eyes, “Are you threatening me?" 

Blendin shook his head, “No, I’m informing you of what the owner has in store for this facility. He hand selected this team himself because you all have proven yourselves to be the facility’s smartest scientists…next to me, of course. Why would he want to endanger you if it meant the collapse of everything we’ve all worked towards?”

Ford regarded Blendin suspiciously and looked around. “This is ridiculous,” he sighed, “I guess I have no choice…but, if I’m directing this ludicrousness I only have one condition.”

Blendin seemed interested, “And that is?”

Ford looked him dead in the eye, “If I so much as see a glitch or a light flicker when we activate that portal, we will abandon the project and I, and my nephew, will walk out of here for good.”

Dipper stared at his uncle nervously. If this project was so dangerous that even his uncle, the man who ate danger for breakfast, would threaten to walk away, Dipper wondered if maybe he was in over his head.

There was a tense silence that hung for a few moments before Blendin chuckled and stood from the chair. “Well, if that’s the case, Dr. Ford, I’m convinced that we won’t run into any problems. The owner has clearly chosen the best leader to guide this team. Are there any other questions?”

Dipper was floored the moment Blendin said they were reactivating the portal project. He was a mixture of scared and excited and, truth be told, he wasn’t sure he was ready for this kind of undertaking. Even though he had over a million questions, he couldn’t seem to think of the best one to ask.

That, and he was trying to determine why he was suddenly hearing voices in his head.

By listening to everyone else’s questions, he learned that the redevelopment for the project wouldn’t start until next year, which was four months away. Blendin suggested that the team, in the meantime, meet at least three times a week to discuss plans and blueprints in order to get the project going again.

Blendin mentioned that once the portal could be activated safely, the next phase of the project would begin.

When Gideon asked what the next phase of the project would be he was met with “it’s classified” as his answer.

Figures.

_KOZMVGH UZOO_

_GBIZMGH XIZDO_

Dipper closed his hands over ears and shook his head, his eyes wide, as he determined that it probably was not the height making him hear strange things.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mabel makes an appearance next chapter~


	7. Nostalgia

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dipper catches up with Mabel and enjoys a relaxing evening for once...until he has a really strange dream.
> 
> This chapter is my way of giving Dipper a break. So enjoy the sibling bonding time before I Hirsch it.

Dipper loved his job. Really he did.

But, dammit if he wasn’t happy to unwind for a bit on the outside and socialize even a little, despite how awkward it made him feel.

Dipper always looked forward to conversations with his uncle, with whom he could discuss his work freely and with no consequence. He even got along pretty well with Soos. They were actually on informal terms now, and it saddened Dipper that he didn’t get to socialize with him as often as he would have liked. When he approached Soos about possibly hanging out over lunch one day, he learned that Soos took his lunches with his girlfriend, a girl named Melody, who worked in the computer labs.

That was a bust, but Dipper was happy that Soos had someone special at least.

The ultimate relief came when he arrived home to his small apartment. Almost every night he and Mabel would chat over Skype and their conversations would revolve mostly around family and Grunkle Stan’s business ventures, which, to Dipper’s surprise, was still going steady despite the man’s blatant cons.

It was enough to warm Dipper’s heart for now.

“Mabel…there’s no way you knitted that many sweaters in under 24 hours…” Dipper sighed with a smile on his face as he sprawled on the couch with his laptop on the coffee table. “Don’t get me wrong, that’s impressive, but…was it really that bad?”

“Yes! I wouldn’t normally pull one of your moves but ugh!” Mabel huffed irritably, “It was just so frustrating! I mean, how can you _not_ like pizza?! That’s like…against the laws of the universe.”

Dipper chuckled at his sister’s agitation, “Mabel, some people literally can’t eat pizza because of the ingredients. I think you’re being irrational.”

Mabel just made a frustrated sound in response and sat in silence while knitting _another_ sweater.

She had gone on a bad date…again. This time it was with one of her coworkers where she worked as a designer. Dipper had been listening to her for over an hour about how she had surprised her blind date with a ridiculous amount of pizza waiting for him at his office, as she had heard through the office grape vine that this dude had…a “love” for pizza. At first Dipper wondered if it was his old college friend…but it turned out the “love” was a huge misunderstanding and Mabel’s crush of the week was…not a pizza fan.

Which wouldn’t have been as bad as it sounded if the dude literally hadn’t hated pizza so much that he had actually organized a campaign to have the food staple permanently removed from their cafeteria.

Of course, Mabel didn’t know that and, as is the state of the world, she completely went head over heels in love and immediately plotted a romance. When she inquired with some people who knew him over what he liked she took their sarcasm quite literally.

Which resulted in her knitting multiple sweaters in the aftermath of the experience.

Mabel sighed as she looked up from knitting what Dipper assumed was her fifth sweater. “I don’t know, Dipper...This is just getting to be too much. I think I’ll just take a break for a while…he was my ray of sunlight in the bland grey of the nine-to-five and now…ugh…now it’s too awkward to be in the same room…”

Dipper frowned. “Hey, don’t be like that,” he sat up and faced the computer, “It just wasn’t--”

“’Meant to be,’’ Mabel groaned, “I know, I know. That still doesn’t make it less sucky, Dipdop.” Mabel smiled at him reassuringly, “I could rant about this for hours, but I want to know what’s going on with you, Mr. Secretive,” she sat back and her mood quickly went from irate to enthusiastic. “Is there _anything_ that you can tell me about your work today?”

Dipper bashfully rubbed the back of his neck and made a strained noise as he thought it through. “Not really…” he broke into a chuckle as he heard Mabel groan irritably, “I’m sorry! It’s a lot of top secret stuff and, honestly, you’d probably get bored listening to me talk about it.”

If Dipper was being honest, he really didn’t want to talk about work, even if he could. The prospect of restarting the portal project was already causing him mass anxiety from excitement and dread. He wasn’t sure if he wanted to say it out loud just yet.

Mabel scoffed and rolled her eyes, “Oh yeah,” she said sarcastically, “That’s exactly what I want to hear. I want to hear all about your scientific research and amazing ‘hypotheories’ and whatnot…” she laughed and stared into the webcam, “Come on, Dipper! Talk to me about fun work stuff! Like the crazy lab shenanigans or how something blew up in your face! Please tell me you’ve at least made some work friends…”

Dipper chuckled nervously as he thought about how his lab actually exploded over a month ago, “Heh, it’s really not as intense as I thought it would be, Mabel,” Lies. “I mean…everything’s pretty much controlled.” Lies…maybe.

Mabel shrugged impatiently, “Well tell me about your work friends!” She paused when Dipper gave a sheepish look, “Dipdop, please tell me you at least have some work friends...?”

Dipper looked at Mabel as if she had snubbed him, “Hey! You know I have work friends...I told you about Soos…”

Mabel nodded. “Yeah, but you never hang out with him outside of work…which is dumb because he sounds awesome! But, seriously, do you have any friends you hang out with outside of work and discuss things that _aren’t_ work related?”

Dipper shook his head despondently. “The only person I hang out with outside of work is Uncle Ford,” he paused in thought before shaking his head, “And even then, we mostly...talk about work.” Another lie.

“Dipper, that’s lame,” Mabel said as-a-matter-of-factly, “I’m giving you homework. Wait…maybe…should it be “work-work?” Whatever…you should make a friend at work. That’s all. Just one friend. It can’t be that hard. You’re not a bad guy.”

Dipper considered her request before piping up. “Well…there is one person I’ve been hanging out with every now and then. I mean…it’s not often and I’m not even sure if I would consider him a friend since he’s kind of…I don’t know…unstable.”

Mabel stopped knitting and stared, “Unstable? Oh my god, Dipper not with the crazy ones again…”

Dipper realized the dangerous territory he was getting into by talking about hanging out with Bill. He wasn’t really good at lying and Bill’s story was definitely not one he should be spreading around so much. “It’s not that! He’s caused some major problems at work a few times and while everyone suspects no one can find evidence to pin it on him. So he just kind of wanders around the facility making people uncomfortable.”

Eh, it wasn’t a total lie, but he might have over exaggerated.

Mabel seemed to understand and nodded though she still looked skeptical. “You would make the dangerous friends, bro,” she suddenly smiled and looked up at the ceiling of her bedroom, “Oh my god, do you remember when you had a crush on that girl who was three grades ahead of us in middle school? What was her name again…Wendy…I think…”

Dipper groaned at the mention of her name, “Oh no…” He leaned forward and hid his face in his hands, “No…”

Mabel squealed, “Yeah you do! Oh, wow I haven’t thought about that in forever!”

Dipper shook his head as he let out a mirthless chuckle, “Neither have I…and I could have lived my entire life happily without hearing about it ever again, Mabel…”

Mabel ‘awwed’ and sat back with a pitying expression on her face. “I’m sorry, bro. If it makes you feel better, I was really proud of you when you finally confessed your feelings to her.”

Dipper looked up and smiled. “You’ve told me. About a hundred times.”

“So why does it still make you upset?” Mabel fixed the last stitch she made on her sweater, “It’s not like she hated you after. She still hung around until she went to college. Do you still talk to her?”

Dipper shrugged. “Every now and then we message on Facebook. Not too often, though,” he shook his head. “And I’m not upset about her in particular, it’s just…you know how I get about making new friends. That’s awkward enough as it is without having to confess to a girl I like. I don’t know…I’m just,” Dipper shrugged and threw his hands up, “…I’m awkward…at everything.”

Mabel sighed. “Dipper, I know you don’t like hearing this, but if I have to hear one more ‘it’s not meant to be’ about every lost _potential_ affair I try to make then you can handle this: you can’t make friends if you don’t try to connect with someone. And I know you can do it if you try!”

Dipper groaned. “I do try! I’ve made many attempts at making friends at work but most of those guys are in these, like, established groups, and it doesn’t help the fact that I got promoted in just five months…now everyone treats me like a…boss.”

Mabel gave him a dubious look, “And this is a problem why?” She extended on the ‘why’ as she focused back on her sweater-in-the-making.

“Mabel, there aren’t many occupations where you can be friends with your boss. And this is one of them.”

Mabel rolled her eyes on a frustrated sigh and sat back, “Well, at least you have the unstable guy, I guess.”

Dipper shrugged, “It’s really not that bad for the most part.” Except for his lab exploding. “We play cards when he shows up at the rec room...He beat me at memory.”

Mabel looked up in faux shock, “Whoa, what? _That’s_ unreal…”

Dipper gave her pointed look as his face became flustered, “Knock it off…I’m serious, I didn’t even get a turn in the round. He just…knew where all the cards were…”

Mabel looked like she reconsidered her judgment and hummed, “That _is_ weird…he might just be really good at seeing through the cards? Which means that your playing deck has the thinnest cards in the universe…”

Dipper shook his head, “No…there’s just something off about this guy…ever since I met him he’s been…unpredictable. It’s kind of difficult to figure him out.”

Mabel hummed in thought for a few seconds. “Well, maybe the next time you two hang out, you could just…have casual banter, you know? As long as he’s not trying to stab you in the eye, it wouldn’t hurt to just to find some common ground. I mean, you’re working in the same building, right? That should be enough to start something.”

Dipper kept forgetting that he hadn’t told Mabel about the explosion in his office from over a month ago, and that he wasn’t really _allowed_ to talk about it like most of everything else. He also didn’t mention that Bill wasn’t _technically_ working for the company. The fact that he was almost certain Bill had tried to kill him was the only thing he needed to say to make Mabel reconsider Dipper even being _friends_ with the guy.

But since he couldn’t talk about it, all he said in response was, “Yeah, I guess you’re right.”

They talked for most of the night about Mabel’s new strategy to find her one true love and Dipper’s homework (“work-work”) to make some new friends or one at least. Their conversations felt nostalgic and they were both thankful for the mindless chatter.

The call came to a close when Mabel let out a wicked yawn and decided that maybe she should get some sleep. Dipper was a bit disappointed but figured it was best for him, too.

As the call screen disappeared, Dipper was left in the silence of his apartment and that heavy, lonely feeling returned.

Dipper never liked the fact that he couldn’t really discuss his work with anyone but Uncle Ford. He craved Mabel’s naiveté where he could just rant out whatever was in his head without being questioned or drilled about the logistics. Uncle Ford was great to talk with but, most of the time, he was constantly interrupting Dipper with his theories or giving him answers (that Dipper never asked for) to his problems.

Dipper realized he missed having Mabel around to just _listen_ to him. She may not have understood everything he talked about, but she understood the sadness, the anger, and the hopelessness in his words as he ranted.

And she was a great comfort without him having to say anything.

Dipper realized that keeping the events that had happened to him at work was starting to take an emotional toll on him, to the point where he barely got any sleep. He would wake in the middle of the night with the anxiety coiling tightly in his stomach and, as a result of that, he had no appetite for most of the day.

Sometimes he had nightmares of being pulled into an empty void and he’d wake up screaming.

With this new project coming up, Dipper figured that more sleepless nights were on the horizon.

Dipper yawned. Maybe sleep would come easier tonight than the last few.

He would get it where he could.

* * *

Dipper knew he was dreaming because all he saw was a vast emptiness.

He sat in what looked like a theatre…there was a huge dome ceiling and auditorium seats circling a large projector in the middle. A planetarium?

Dipper looked around and noticed he was the only one sitting in a theatre seat. He turned his gaze upwards and stared in awe at the ceiling that was now activated to display stars and galaxies flashing across the vast vacuum of space. There was some ambient music playing, which gave way to a relaxing atmosphere that was so much different than the rest of Dipper’s dreams.

It was calming.

Dipper smiled, leaning his head back as he stared at the ceiling of stars. The ambient music soothing him to a relaxed state he couldn’t imagine he would ever find again.

A few moments later, an echoing voice pierced through the room, _“Can you hear me?”_

Dipper’s brows furrowed slightly in confusion, _‘What?’_

The response sounded irritated and it broke the nice setting Dipper was enjoying, _“Ugh…can you hear me?”_

Dipper sat up and looked around the room, which now contained only the seat he was sitting in and no stars above him, _‘What is this?’_

A chuckle echoed around him, _“Apparently it’s your empty head…hang on…let me try something…”_

Dipper, now afraid of being pulled into another nightmare, felt the anxiety curling in his stomach as the room became darker to the point where he thought his eyes were actually closed in the dream, _‘What’s happening? No…stop…’_ He gripped at the arms of the chair and was afraid to let them go. This was ridiculous…he was only dreaming!

Whoever was speaking to him responded in a panic, _“No, no, no! Wait! I almost got it…just…sit still…”_

Why did that voice sound so familiar?

Somehow Dipper found himself becoming calmer as he watched the room transform into the planetarium again. Once his eyes adjusted, he noticed the theatre seats had returned and he unconsciously relaxed back into his seat, letting his arms fall to the sides as he looked back up to the ceiling where he could see the milky way and stars shooting across the sky.

It looked so real.

He stared for what felt like hours when that voice entered the room again, speaking quietly, _“Nice place, kid. It kinda reminds me of what my dreams used to look like…”_

Dipper closed his eyes momentarily before deciding he was not going to let this intrusion ruin the calm moment again, _‘Who…are you?’_

Dipper let out a chuckle, _‘Figures…’_

The voice spoke again, it sounded anxious and…a bit flustered? _“Well…no, I just… don’t know how to answer that, honestly…I didn’t think this would work!”_

“What would work?” Dipper said out loud and opened his eyes and was disappointed to see his bedroom ceiling and not a ceiling of stars. He pinched himself to make sure he was actually awake, which, to his displeasure, he was. He looked around his room and noticed it was still dark outside. It might have been about three in the morning.

Dipper closed his eyes again and tried to will himself back into the dream but to no luck.

He considered it a small victory since it was the first night he felt a sense of calm before officially waking up.


	8. X Over I

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After discovering something disturbing in Bill's deck of playing cards, a frustrated Dipper demands answers...

Dipper arrived at work the next day earlier than usual. So early, in fact, that he became aware of the policy where if the lobby supervisor in each department was not at their station, it meant no one could get into their labs.

Not even head supervisors. Soos arrived at work every day at 7:00 in the morning as his schedule dictated. 

At present, it was 6:15. Dipper was now realizing his mistake.

Grumbling and slightly annoyed, Dipper made his way to the cafeteria where the staff had just put out some breakfast.

Since it was the first morning where he hadn’t awoken with stomach coiling anxiety, Dipper was drooling at the buffet laid out in the cafeteria. The smell of fresh scrambled eggs and biscuits was enough to sway him and he filled a tray to the brim, not minding the fact that his eyes might have been bigger than his stomach.

Which was truer than he wanted it to be. He ate half of his eggs, some of his hash browns, all of the turkey bacon, and a small cup of strawberries. He still had a biscuit, a blueberry muffin, and some hash browns left over when he became too full to eat anymore.

Dipper cursed his small stomach and large appetite.

He shoved the tray aside and pulled out his phone, scrolling through some of his messages and smiled at Mabel’s encouraging texts.

“Wow, you sure know how to make a breakfast tray.”

Dipper looked up to see Bill staring down at the tray of the half-eaten food hungrily. He noticed that Bill was wearing a light purple shirt today instead of his usual red one but he was still in the same teal pants.

Bill sat down across from Dipper and leaned forward, “Couldn’t handle all that food, huh? That’s a shame.”

Dipper wanted to respond but he felt this strange sense of familiarity, almost like déjà vu, as he looked at Bill. It was as if he had just spoken to him a few hours ago and the feeling wouldn’t go away. He knew he played cards with him yesterday before the meeting…but…it felt like Bill was speaking to him at home at some point before he went to bed…

Bill eyed Dipper’s expressionless face and leaned his head down, “Are you even here right now?” He snapped his fingers in Dipper’s face, “Hey! Wake up!”

Dipper blinked and shook his head, “What…uh,” he looked at his tray, “Oh, yeah…I guess I wasn’t as hungry as I thought I was.”

Bill tutted as he reached over and grabbed the biscuit, tearing bits of it, “You should listen to your stomach more,” He started eating the pieces he tore off, “You may learn something when you listen." 

Dipper checked his phone again for the time: 6:26… He sighed and continued scrolling through messages as Bill hesitantly pulled Dipper’s tray towards him and started eating the rest of the food. Dipper didn’t mind, at least the food wasn’t going to waste.

A few minutes passed and Bill, finished with the breakfast, eventually got tired of sitting in silence, “Why are you here so early, Pine Tree?”

Dipper’s brows creased and he looked up, “Excuse me?”

Bill was toying with the crumbs of the blueberry muffin, “I asked why you were here so early.”

Dipper shook his head, “No…what…what did you call me?”

Bill’s pursed his lips in thought, “’Pine Tree?’” he grinned, “Oh!” He reached into his pocket and pulled out his coin, “I was looking over my coin last night and saw this,” he pointed to the engraved pine tree symbol, “I don’t know why but I thought of you when I saw it so…” he gestured at Dipper, “Pine Tree! Get it? Because…your last name is Pines…and this is a tree…”

Dipper stared, “That sounds ridiculous. You can’t just call me by my name?”

Bill looked at him blankly, “’Dr. Pines?’” He shook his head, “Nope, too formal and silly to be taken seriously.”

Dipper stared at him pointedly, “You could just call me ‘Dipper’…”

Bill snickered, “Yeah…no…I like ‘Pine Tree’ better.”

Dipper shook his head, “Please don’t call me that.”

Bill set him with an intense stare as he smirked, “I think I’m gonna do it all the time." 

Dipper mumbled, “Whatever, don’t get mad if I don’t respond to it.”

Bill hummed and changed the subject, pocketing his coin, “Are we playing cards today?”

Dipper put his phone back in his pocket, “I’m actually not sure about today. I…” He almost mentioned being put on a big project but when he realized with whom he was talking to he hesitated a little too obviously, “…I have a lot of work to catch up on. I might be too busy to get away.”

Bill’s expression went from friendly to expressionless, almost as if he knew he was being lied to. He didn’t respond save for throwing the remaining bits of the muffin on the empty tray, “Well,” he shoved the tray forward, “If you’re not going to entertain me…then I guess I’ll have to find some other way of entertaining myself.”

Dipper froze at the way Bill lowered his voice when he said that, “What…please tell me you’re not going to do something illegal…”

Bill grinned almost menacingly and glared, “I don’t know if I like what you’re insinuating… 

Dipper gave Bill a pleading look, “Are you seriously threatening me to play cards with you?”

Bill shook his head, “Of course not,” he said flatly, “But I have to admit that getting into trouble is certainly a lot more entertaining than wandering around the first floor aimlessly and playing peek-a-boo with the newer security guards.”

Dipper sighed, “I really don’t know if I’ll be able to get away from work to play cards today but…I don’t know, can’t you like, go to the library or something? I know there’s one on the first floor.”

Bill’s gaze shifted sheepishly, “I’m, um, not allowed in there.”

Dipper was curious, “And…why’s that?”

Bill shrugged and a small blush of embarrassment crossed his cheeks, “I kept putting American History textbooks in the comedy section…”

Dipper stared blankly, “Are you serious?”

“Yep. And that was before…” the look in his eyes became full of worry and he trailed off.

Dipper suddenly felt a clue jumpstart his brain, was he finally getting somewhere? Would Bill finally tell him about the incident ten years ago? “Before what?”

Bill looked around nervously as he shifted in his seat and spoke quietly, “Before _it_ happened.”

Dipper gave him a desperate look and leaned closer, whispering, “Before _what_ happened?”

Bill shook his head and closed his eyes in a pained expression, pinching the bridge of his nose, “You’re late.”

Dipper stammered, “W-wait…what…?”

“You’re late, kid,” he put his hand in his pocket, taking out the deck of cards and sliding it towards Dipper.

Dipper hesitantly reached for the deck and paused as Bill tightened his grip on it and gave Dipper a pleading stare. It was like he wanted to say something urgent.

Dipper mouthed ‘what?'

Bill lifted his hand from the card deck, “I want these _back_ later,” he stood up, “Thanks for breakfast.”

Dipper watched Bill walk hurriedly out of the cafeteria. He grabbed the deck of cards from the table, pocketing it quickly.

He made an offhand decision to check his phone.

Bill was right. Dipper _was_ late.

* * *

Dipper met with his Uncle Ford at his office on the third floor three hours later to go over blueprint plans for the new portal project. As it turned out, and to no one’s surprise, they were not going to deviate too much from the original design of the initial portal project from ten years ago.

Dipper noticed his uncle was tense the entire time while discussing it, and he tried to offer his uncle some consolation by assuring him that as long as he was leading the project there was nothing to worry about in the planning stages.

Ford shook his head in disagreement, “Dipper…this is extremely dangerous…I just…I don’t want anyone to have to go through what any of us went through that time…and I _really_ don’t want you getting hurt or worse…”

Dipper thought about Bill’s almost confession at breakfast and nodded, “I understand but…at least you know what we can do to make it right….right?”

Ford exhaled through his nose and nodded shortly, staying quiet as he glanced over the blueprints one more time before rolling them up neatly, “I’ll have my carrier run these to Fiddleford and he’ll determine how long it’ll take him to get the equipment ready. Blendin mentioned using the original portal’s equipment but I’d rather start from scratch…it may not make a difference in the grand scheme of things but I’ll sleep better at night.”

Dipper nodded, “Is there anything else I can do on this until Dr. F gets everything ready?”

Ford shook his head, “Not at this point. We’ll meet once a week to discuss progress on each of our ends but until we get sent down below, just keep working on your assignments. We should be up and running in about two months so…better start prepping yourself for the deep underground.”

Dipper watched as Ford walked over to his mini-library and pulled out two leather-bound journals, “Take these,” he offered, “There’s a lot of strange creatures down there and you’ll want to at least prepare yourself for the introduction.”

Dipper accepted the journals and admired their covers. There was a gold emboss of a six-fingered hand on each cover with the volume number. The embossed hand was much like his uncle’s own genetic defect and he grinned in understanding, “You wrote these?”

Ford nodded with an honored grin, “You probably won’t find anything better to prepare you for what’s down below." He tensed up with worry, "Just make sure they stay safe, that’s thirty years of research you're holding.”

“Whoa…” Dipper held the books a little tighter to his chest, “Thanks, Uncle Ford…I’ll keep them safe.” With that, he saluted his uncle as he walked out of the office to return to his own on the first floor.

Dipper was thankful the elevators were empty and he used the descent to think over the prospect of working on the eighth floor, the lowest level of the facility. He had never even been past the third floor...

The lower levels were kept extremely top secret to the point where extra security measures were taken the lower you descended. No one could get past fifth floor without special clearance. Rumors about creatures on the lower levels always sounded so fascinating, though. From what he heard, one of the security guards was some kind of tamed-ish creature called a “manataur.”

Dipper would see for himself eventually.

Once the project was announced, Dipper had received a new I.D. that would start the process of giving him access to the lower levels. The I.D. wouldn’t be activated for another month, but he still had to do another retina scan and go through the motions of submitting DNA samples to make sure he, and only he, could get past the tight security.

He recalled the security measures he had learned about in orientation and shuddered at the thought of experiencing a security breach. He wondered if the portal incident from ten years ago was what caused them to amp their security up so strictly.

Once Dipper arrived at the first floor, he headed to his office to have some mindless chatter with Soos and hopefully start going over his research for the project. As he put his hand in his pocket for his I.D., he froze when his hand touched the card deck Bill had placed on the table earlier that morning.

Bill had said he wanted them back. Dipper looked toward the direction of the rec room down the hall and considered checking to see if Bill was there. After all, he wasn’t sure if he would get a chance to meet with him before leaving for the day.

But then he had a thought…a very interesting thought and decided to go back to his office.

* * *

Dipper was so intent on this thought that he muttered only a brief ‘hey’ to Soos as he walked by and made a straight path to his office. If someone spoke to him, he didn’t hear it.

Once in the solitude of his office, he placed his uncle’s journals on his desk and took the card deck out, observing it thoughtfully before opening it and taking the cards out. He flipped through each of the cards and sighed before setting them down.

Given Bill’s personality, Dipper thought that Bill would have at least left him a note or something inside of the deck. Since it seemed Bill was secretive and communicated with him in what seemed like some sort of code, Dipper was having a hard time trying to figure it out. He still didn’t figure out the sequence of numbers Bill had tapped on the table from a few weeks ago…if that meant anything at all.

Maybe Bill just _really_ wanted to play cards with him later.

Dipper started assembling the deck back together when something on one of the face cards caught his eye. He held the joker card up and noticed that the joker’s eyes were crossed out in red ink. Dipper set the card back down and looked at the rest of them.

He leaned forward with interest as he fished out all the kings, queens, and jacks and his eyes widened.

The eyes were all crossed out on the cards.

Dipper silently cursed for not realizing it sooner. The cards weren’t like that yesterday when he and Bill played…So why did Bill cross out the eyes?

Dipper opened his desk drawer and took out the number sequence he heard Bill tapping out when they played cards at their second meeting in the rec room. When he was a kid, Dipper thought himself good at cracking codes. This, however, was another animal.

_3-12-5-22-5-18-13-1-14_

_23-1-14-20-20-15-16-12-1-25_

Dipper suddenly remembered substitution ciphers. He took out his notebook and wrote the letters of the English alphabet along with the numbers one through twenty-six. Once assembled, he corresponded the numbers to each letter and determined:

_CLEVERMAN  
WANTTOPLAY_

Dipper dropped his pen and stared at the words. There was no way…he looked back at the cards and the crossed out eyes. Bill was obviously toying with him…He remembered the sounds he heard during the meeting yesterday.

The strange, garbled words.

Nothing this strange had ever happened until he ran into Bill in the elevator and Dipper was now convinced that Bill had _everything_ to do with the weirdness.

What frustrated him was _why_ Bill was doing this…

He grabbed the cards again and checked them for any other writing or numbers.

Aggravated, Dipper’s heart was racing as he haphazardly shoved the cards back into the box and stormed out of his office, ignoring his team’s glances and Soos’s concerned face as he headed for the rec room.

The doors to the rec room were open and as soon as Dipper crossed the threshold, his gaze immediately landed on Bill.

Bill was sitting alone at the table, his hands folded neatly in front of him and his face expressionless. He didn’t even look up when Dipper finally approached him.

Dipper carelessly dropped the deck down in front of Bill and sat down, staring at Bill silently and hoping that the blonde could sense how angry he was. There was no one in the rec room save for a security guard who was standing just outside the opened doors.

Dipper spoke quietly and he gestured to the cards, “I think you should explain yourself.”

A small smile graced Bill’s features and he looked over at Dipper, “Oh come on, kid,” he placed his index finger on the card deck and dragged it across the table, “Do you think I would make it as easy as that?”

Dipper was beyond frustrated. He really didn’t like the feeling of being played with and he had to take breaths to control the urge to flip the table. Instead, he reached out and grabbed the deck forcefully and dragged back over to himself, which earned him a hard glare from Bill, “I’m serious,” he whispered that probably came out more desperate than he intended, “Don’t test me…”

Bill, in an amazing show of speed, pocketed the deck in a flash, “Let me guess, you figured out _something_ …and now you think you deserve all the answers?” Bill shook his head, “That’s not how this game is played.”

Dipper thought about that for a moment. Bill had spoken about giving Dipper chances… The tapping on the table, the crossed out eyes in the deck, was Bill even connected to the voices during the meeting yesterday…?

Bill was getting impatient with Dipper’s silence and shrugged, “You could freak out or you could play along,” he took out his coin and flipped it over the tops of his fingers, “What’ll it be, _Pine Tree_?”

Dipper considered his options, “How…” Dipper couldn’t believe himself, “Why can’t you just tell me?”

Bill smiled, tapped at his cranium, and circled his index finger in the air in a gesture of the room around him, “I already have. You just have to listen.”

Then he winked.

Dipper was starting to lose steam, “Listen?” He looked around and shrugged as he leaned back in the chair, “Man…I don’t know, this is just…it’s too much…why are you doing this?”

Bill didn’t respond but he held his coin up to Dipper, “Look at this,” he demanded.

Dipper glanced over, “I’ve seen it.” It was just a coin…

Bill shook his head and shoved the coin in Dipper’s face, “No, _look_ at it. Fifteen seconds…”

Dipper was irritated but he figured it was better not to argue and he stared at the stupid coin with the weird pyramid in the middle. Fifteen seconds didn’t seem like much but it felt like forever with an engraved, one-eyed pyramid staring into your soul.

Dipper relaxed when Bill pulled the coin back and set it on the table and chanced his turn at a question, “Where did you even get that coin…Bill?”

Bill looked at Dipper and smiled, the look in his eyes was soft, “It was a _gift._ ” Dipper noticed for the first time since he sat down that Bill’s voice was hoarse as if he had been screaming, “I got it ten years ago when I came out of the portal.”

 


	9. Planetarium Dreams

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bill and Dipper have a heart to heart about what happened to Bill ten years ago...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Some appropriate listening music if you're interested: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jMT1mDS5YE4

“When you came out of the portal?” Dipper’s heart started racing, this was the topic he had wanted to discuss for the last few weeks…

Bill looked at Dipper quickly, “Yes."

Dipper thought he would start hyperventilating. He had so many questions and now that the conversation on the first portal had started he didn’t know which one to ask first. He cleared his throat, the obvious one came out first, “Um…do you remember what happened?”

Bill fixed him with a very critical look, “Really? What do you think?”

Dipper shrugged defensively, “Well, it sounds like it was quite an ordeal…you may remember much or not at all… 

Bill didn’t respond but a haunted look crossed his face and he breathed deeply through his nose.

Dipper took the hint and leaned back, trying to seem disinterested, “If you don’t want to talk about it, it’s fine. Just…stop messing with me all the time…I have enough on my plate as it is without having to worry about you playing your mind games or you trying to kill me.”

Bill made a surprised noise and scoffed, “I wasn’t trying to kill you, you big dumb,” he rolled his eyes, “You know, your uncle really overestimated your intelligence…”

At this point, Dipper was confused by two things: The first was that Bill admitted he didn’t try to kill him. Not that surprising but, whatever. The second was Bill mentioning his uncle overestimating how smart he was. What did that mean? Was he still communicating with his Uncle Ford? Why didn’t Ford mention it…?

Bill shook his head at Dipper’s expression and spared him the confusion, “Your uncle and I worked together before the incident, goofball. He mentioned you every now and then…and frankly, I’m a little disappointed.”

Dipper was still gaping, “You weren’t trying to kill me…so why…with the explosion…why did you send that specimen to me?”

Bill let out a frustrated sigh, “Kid,” he started, “This conversation cannot happen here,” he took out his card deck again, “But I’ll throw you a bone if you’re that desperate…you know what card game I’m really not good at?” Bill took the cards out of the box.

Dipper just stared, “What?" 

“Fifty-two card pick up.” Bill threw the cards in the air.

* * *

Unsurprisingly, Bill was carted off, gently this time, by security for making the rec room a mess when he threw the cards in the air. After picking the cards up and giving them back to Bill before he was taken away, Dipper, as always, was once again left questioning Bill’s motives and his entire existence.

He had gone back to his office and started reading his uncle’s first journal as he paced around the room, clicking on his pen.

An hour later, he received a phone call from Ivan.

“Dr. Pines,” Ivan greeted with no hint of welcome, “I don’t have time to bother with the niceties so I’ll skip straight to the point.”

Dipper frowned as he sat down in his chair, “Okay?”

“I know you’ve been spending a lot of time with Cipher,” he began, “While it’s nothing too serious at this juncture I am obliged to remind you that he, while a bit aloof most of the time, is an incredibly unstable man. Considering how you’ve been ranking in favor with the head supervisor as of late, I don’t need stress why communicating with him any further is _not_ in your best interests.”

There was a heavy emphasis on Ivan’s words and it sent a shiver down Dipper’s spine. He leaned back, “I…we only play cards in the rec room, sir,” he explained, “Aside from that, I don’t really see him around…”

Ivan hummed, “I see. Regardless, we monitor Cipher on a consistent basis and I am aware that you’ve recently been put on a very important project that Cipher would pose as a great security risk if he were to find out about it so, for your own sake, Dr. Pines, I would stop all recreational activities with Cipher immediately. This is not up for discussion.”

Dipper didn’t like how this sounded and he wasn’t sure why…it reminded him of when he was younger and his parents instructed he and Mabel to stop hanging out with Wendy and her friends when they found out they were hanging out in graveyards and breaking into abandoned buildings.

“Of course if Cipher is persistent in wanting to spend time with you,” there was a beat of silence, “We will remove him from the first floor until the project is complete.”

“Remove him?” Dipper felt a pang of fear, “Where would he go?”

“Pardon my lack of tact but that really isn’t any of your concern, Dr. Pines,” Ivan's voice was heavy, “If you have no more relative questions on the matter, I will let you resume your duties.”

Dipper shook his head, “Uh…no, you’re crystal clear,” he said a bit awkwardly.

“Very good. Enjoy the rest of your day, Dr. Pines.”

Dipper made a thankful sound and placed his phone back on the receiver, staring at it before glancing at the clock.

It was nearly 3:00 in the afternoon and Dipper had already had enough of the day. The phone call with Ivan immediately started a headache Dipper knew would turn into a migraine. He decided to call it in early and head home. He would reap the repercussions of not submitting his reports tomorrow.

It wasn’t too much of a long drive to his apartment but he was relieved when he opened the door and threw his bag carelessly on the floor.

He went into his kitchen and fished out some pain reliever to help with his growing migraine and after downing two, he walked back into the living room where he peeled out of his jacket and collapsed on the couch.

He was so drained he didn’t even take his shoes off.

He haphazardly reached for the blanket and curled up to go to sleep.

* * *

When Dipper opened his eyes he was in the planetarium again. He smiled with relief and looked up at the dome ceiling full of stars. The room was dark save for a few reflections of colors of the galaxies and the ambient music was toned perfectly. He folded his chair back in recline position and thought it couldn’t get any more perfect than this.

Finally, a relaxing sleep.

“Hey, Pine Tree.”

Oh what the hell.

Dipper stared at the ceiling in fear that he would be transported back to the dark void like last time. However, nothing changed and nothing shifted. He was still in the planetarium and the dome was still showcasing the stars.

“What…?”Was Bill really in his dream?

There was a shifting sound and a creaking of a chair that came from behind him, “It’s a greeting,” Bill replied obviously, “I can see you’re confused…”

Dipper was cursing his subconscious for even allowing Bill to be in his dreams, “Are you really here?” That question came out sounding so ridiculous.

Dipper heard a smile in Bill’s response, “Yes,” and Dipper saw a shadow of an arm cast over what little light the stars on the ceiling provided, “This is what I call the ‘mindscape,’ kid. Pretty cool, huh?”

Then Bill was suddenly sitting next to him, “This is what your subconscious looks like on a good day.”

Dipper scoffed, “I don’t consider this a very good day if you’re here.”

Bill laughed, “That’s not very nice,” he tsk'd before stretching his arms, “Well…the other day I was kind of surprised I was able to tap into your subconscious in the first place. It was the first time I’ve been able to reach this far out of the facility. You know, messing with security guards who fall asleep on the job is only so much fun before they start suspecting.”

Dipper had no idea what Bill was talking about. He was curious but stayed silent in favor of staring at the dome with the rotating stars. If what Bill was saying was true, and this was all a dream, he could force Bill away by ignoring him, right? It was _his_ subconscious after all, he was in control here.

Right?

Bill shifted in his seat as he stared up at the ceiling as well, seemingly not affected by Dipper trying to shut him out, “You must have a pretty good memory attached to this place if it’s this engrained into your subconscious. Don’t worry, I’m not about to travel through your memories to see why, though…”

Dipper hummed, “Our parents used to take us when we were kids,” he shifted his gaze in Bill’s direction curiously, “It was one of the only things that made me relax.” Dipper sighed, why did he have to say that? Bill didn’t need to know that.

Bill looked up at the ceiling, “I don’t think I’ve never been to one of these,” he admitted, “Although I have to admit, they don’t do too bad of a job recreating the expanse of the universe. It’s not as _relaxing_ in reality.”

The colors were slowly changing from a purplish-blue hue to pink and red ones as the galaxies shifted on the ceiling. Dipper sighed, “I don’t understand why you’re here…why you won’t go away. Are you going to give me a nightmare like the last time?”

Bill shifted again, “I didn’t mean to that time…don’t worry. I’ll make sure you stay right here until you wake up.” There was a sound of Bill messing with the seat and setting it in the reclined position, “Last time was a bit of a mess but I think I have a handle on it now. I guess it was a good thing I reinforced the coin’s importance in your memory when I had you look at it earlier.”

“The coin brought you here?” Dipper asked in a low voice. The stars above him were twinkling brightly and splotches of pink, red, and yellow were glowing around the perimeter of the ceiling.

Bill hummed, “Well, I guess you could consider it the catalyst that sparked your connection to me.”

“Huh,” Dipper didn’t like the idea of being ‘connected’ to Bill but if this were a dream then he wouldn’t worry about it.

Currently he found it odd that Bill sounded so…calm…and not as cryptic as he usually did.

It was a bit difficult to see in the darkness of the planetarium but Dipper could tell by the look on Bill’s face that he seemed mesmerized by the ceiling of stars. He looked…a bit different. Dipper could tell that his hair wasn’t a disheveled mess and he wasn’t in the same scrub-looking outfit that he wore at the facility. Instead, he was wearing a faded looking dark t-shirt and jeans. He even looked younger. There was an I.D. clipped to the shirt and Dipper could see the name on the tag was scratched and faded out along with Bill’s picture.

 _‘Is that him from ten years ago?’_ Dipper thought as he scrutinized the faded picture and name on the I.D.

Bill glanced at Dipper and smirked, one eyebrow arching inquisitively, the pink and yellow colors lit up on his face, “So which view are you enjoying more, kid?”

Dipper nearly fell out of his chair as Bill turned to face him. Bill’s eyes were glowing light blue and Dipper couldn’t see his pupils...was this an effect of the dream? “Your eyes…” he said softly, “How…?”

“Oh…” Bill looked embarrassed and closed his eyes, the light emanating from them extinguished, “I forgot how my eyes look when I do this…if it makes you uncomfortable I can just keep them closed…I can’t really control it in the mindscape…”

Dipper didn’t really react the way he would have if he were awake. He still figured this was just a very lucid dream and this Bill was his dream Bill. He didn’t want to think about that too much. Still he would play along, “How is this possible…?”

Dipper noticed Bill’s expression became conflicted and his lips pressed into a thin line as he seemed to be in deep thought. Dipper couldn’t see his face for a moment as the colors transitioned, “Bill?”

Bill pursed his lips and kept his eyes closed, “Do you know what happens when you die?”

Dipper waited for the answer instead of providing one.

Bill grinned, “I can tell you that I don’t personally know what happens in the moment,” he chuckled, “But I did…come back from _something_ …and I’m not sure if I momentarily left the world and reentered it or if I came _from_ the portal as someone else…but what’s for sure is…I’m not the person I was…whoever that was…if I’m even a person anymore…" 

Dipper tried to see Bill’s face in the dark but the best he could get was the flashes of different colors from the planetarium as they crossed over his face. Dipper waited for Bill to continue.

Bill frowned, “When I came out of the portal,” he said, “There was this intense power running through my head and it was overwhelming. All this energy I could feel coursing through my veins. It was a rush and it was slow all at the same time…and my vision…was crystal clear. It was like looking at a map…I could see above me, behind me, all around me…it was like looking into a clear kaleidoscope…that was a lot to take in when I came to…”

Dipper looked back at the ceiling, “When you came to?”

Bill paused for a moment, “When I adjusted to my surroundings…everyone was gaping at me like I’d grown a second head,” he laughed, “That would…that would have been neat, huh?” He cracked one glowing eye open and looked in Dipper’s direction. Dipper did not look impressed and Bill glanced back at the ceiling, “Well…anyway, the silly security people took me away to be questioned-“

Dipper interrupted, “I thought the medics took you away…?”

Bill responded icily, “Were you there?”

Dipper suddenly felt like an asshole, “I’m sorry…keep going, please…”

Bill made a non-committal noise, “Being questioned by security was the last thing I remembered actually. After that the medics came in and I was monitored for a few months after.”

Dipper waited for a few seconds silence before looking over at Bill and ventured a question, “Do you remember anything from before the incident?”

Bill groaned, “Not everything…I don’t think I’ll ever get them back." 

“What do you mean?” Dipper looked back at the ceiling. The stars were still there.

Bill shrugged, “Well, I’ve searched through all of my memories and…I can’t find any about my life before coming to this town. GF’s _impeccable_ security is to blame for that…”

“Security?” Dipper looked at Bill again, “What do they have to do with your memories being gone?”

Bill gave Dipper a dismal smile, his glowing blue eyes flashing for a moment, “Oh, Pine Tree,” he shook his head slowly, “What they didn’t tell you before you started working for the ‘greatest scientific facility’ in the world is that when you leave GF-Corp…you were never there in the first place.”

“What does that mean?”

Bill pulled his knees up in a bent position as he spoke, “The main purpose of GF’s security personnel isn’t just about making sure the facility’s secrets stay unexposed…they also erase memories. Do you really believe that a facility that houses the greatest conspiracies and creatures in the world hasn’t been exposed because people honestly keep their mouths shut?”

Dipper stared at the ceiling as he let this _dream information, Dipper, you’re dreaming_ process, “So how can you remember everything after the incident…?”

Bill smiled, “Because whatever I came back with from that portal is more powerful than their silly mind control devices,” he looked over at Dipper, “They may be able to inhibit me physically but they can’t touch my mind.”

Dipper closed his eyes in concentration, “But you just said they erased your memories of your life before coming to Gravity Falls. So which is it?”

Bill went quiet for a few moments before speaking, “I guess…those memories just weren’t important anymore…”

Dipper looked over at Bill and felt a pang of guilt when he saw how somber he looked, “Important to who…?”

Bill gulped nervously, “Hey…” he smiled as he gestured to the ceiling, “Isn’t that the Big Dipper?”

Dipper didn’t appreciate the change of subject but he glanced back at the ceiling, “Um…yeah, it is,” Dipper chuckled, “You know…I have a birthmark on my forehead in that exact shape…”

“Really?” Bill replied musingly as if this information was not important, “Can I see?”

Dipper hesitated before he realized this was most likely just a dream and brushed his hair away from his forehead. He waited anxiously as Bill leaned over to stare at his forehead though because Bill’s eyes showcased no pupils…Dipper was uncertain where Bill’s gaze was actually set.

It felt like Bill just stared at him for hours and Dipper let out a breath when he finally moved away. They sat in silence for a few more moments as the planetarium continued to morph between different galaxies. 

Dipper broke the silence by venturing into the portal territory again, “How long were you in the portal…?”

Bill hummed, “I’m actually not sure…time doesn’t really mean anything when you’re between dimensions…everyone said it was thirty seconds, some said it was three minutes…it was long enough to where it nearly destroyed the town, though.”

“Uncle Ford…didn’t say it almost destroyed the town…”

Bill scoffed, “Pine Tree,” he said, “Stanford doesn’t remember it as well as he thinks he does…he doesn’t even remember me.”

Dipper wondered if it was possible to get splitting headaches in dreams, “What…?” he closed his eyes when a star flashed brightly over the ceiling, “So what _really_ happened?” Dipper flinched when Bill suddenly put his hands over his eyes. When did Bill move behind him? “W-What are you doing…?”

Bill was quiet before speaking, leaning down to where Dipper could feel Bill’s forehead press against his own, “Another time, Pine Tree,” he traced his fingers down Dipper's face, “Sleep well.”

Bill had said something else but Dipper opened his eyes to the starry ceiling he couldn’t recall what it was…the silence entered the room so heavily that the Dipper forgot the ambient music was still playing.

The colors of the galaxies seemed so grey now…

* * *

As Dipper woke from his dream he was thankful that his headache had gone away. He was also surprised that he was only asleep for about fifteen minutes. It felt like he slept an entire eight hours.

However the _dream_ conversation he had with _dream_ Bill was still racing through his mind and he struggled to remember it completely.

He noticed he was holding a pen as he sat up from the couch.

Pen. Paper…In a moment of clarity, reached for a spare sheet of graphing paper and started jotting some of his thoughts down before the dream completely left his mind. _‘This is insane,’_ he thought to himself as scribbled on the paper, _‘It was just a dream…’_

The more he thought about the dream and the events that had been unfolding at work, Dipper could no longer ignore the connections and coincidences. He wasn’t even sure whom to trust anymore.

He stopped writing when he noticed something marked on his arm beneath his sweater sleeve, it looked like blue ink. Dipper unrolled the sleeve to see a message…

_Find Journal 3._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The next update will be pushed back to next Friday. 
> 
> See you then! :)


	10. The Jack and the Queen

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dipper is in a race against time to figure out Bill's codes before it's too late...

Dipper furiously scrubbed at the message on his arm with soap and water. His mind was racing a million miles trying to come up with an explanation but to no avail. _‘This is insane…this is just insane!’_ He was almost relieved when he heard his cell phone ringing. He fumbled clumsily with his dry hand as he accepted the call.

“Good-ish news,” Uncle Ford greeted over the phone, “Fiddleford’s department started working on the equipment for the portal and that should be up and running to the underground sometime at the end of the month.”

“Y-Yeah?” Dipper looked at his now red, but clean, arm, “So we’re ahead of schedule?” He wasn’t sure if this was good news or not but with Bill’s cryptic tale of the portal in his dream…Dipper saw no good to come from this.

“That’s right,” Ford sighed heavily, “When will you be in tomorrow?”

Dipper grabbed a towel and dried off his arm, the ink now a faint blue and his skin still red from the rough cleansing, “Should be in around 7 AM but if you need me earlier I can be there. Not much of an early bird though…”

“Heh, sounds like I’m going to have to give you my ‘up-and-at-‘em’ recipe,” Dipper could hear the small smile in his uncle’s voice, “It got me through the long nights on the first project and should do just as well for you.” 

Dipper was about to object before he remembered his naptime dream. Staying awake all night suddenly didn’t sound like a bad idea, “Yeah I guess I can get that from you…it sounds like good stuff to know…” Dipper stared at his arm, “Hey, Uncle Ford? Um…about the journals…there were only two, right?”

There was a pause before Ford responded, “Uh…yeah, I believe so,” he coughed, “It’s all I’ve got…why? Nothing happened to them, did it? Dipper, I swear, those journals have decades worth of research-" 

“No, no!” Dipper laughed, “No…I was just, you know, making sure…um, hey, it’s getting a little late and I’m gonna get myself ready for bed and I’ll see you bright and early tomorrow, okay? Bye.” Dipper quickly ended the call before it could get more awkward than that.

He took some deep breaths as he looked at his arm where the message had been written.

His uncle was definitely hiding something. Or he had no memory of what was hidden…  
  
Either way, Dipper didn’t sleep that night.

* * *

Dipper’s routine became much slower in the mornings after that night. What used to be mere background noise as he made his way to work was now all he could focus on. Security detail became a lot more awkward given the notion that the intimidating team could possibly erase anyone’s memories if they felt like it.

He also couldn’t get the message about a third journal out of his head. He attempted to talk with his uncle about it one more time but was adamantly brushed off. But no matter how hard Ford tried to conceal it, Dipper couldn’t ignore the slight hesitation in his uncle’s gaze.

Regardless, with the project start date quickly approaching, Dipper realized that his priorities should have been focused elsewhere.

He had to remind himself that the things Bill had said to him in his dream were just that: a dream. Nothing more.

It was easier said than done.

So in an effort to stay out of trouble and away from Bill as Ivan had strongly suggested the day before, Dipper locked himself in his lab and his office until he was ready to go underground.

He felt a bit guilty about sort of abandoning Bill to boredom but Dipper figured his own sanity was worth the guilt.

Or so he thought.

* * *

A few days later, his uncle had phoned him with instructions on prepping for a long stay underground. “Last time,” he explained, “We stayed down there for two months straight.” 

Dipper rationed he would have to quickly overcome whatever claustrophobia he had, if any. Two months was a long time with a half a mile of earth above your head. 

Weeks went by without much incident to Dipper’s surprised relief. Since he was avoiding the rec rooms and any public place on the first floor, avoiding Bill was an easy task. 

And to Dipper’s surprise, it seemed that Bill wasn’t searching him out. The first week of avoiding Bill, Dipper presumed that Bill would chase him down to play cards…or try to kill him. 

But there was nothing. No Bill whatsoever. Dipper wondered if he had been taken by security again… 

His nights also became unusually dreamless. No nightmares, no planetarium, no Bill, just sleep. 

Boring sleep. 

It shouldn’t have unnerved Dipper…but it did. His instinct told him to beware…but he was never good at listening to that anyway.

* * *

Three nights before he would go underground, his uncle called him to discuss the preparations and the schedule they would be on. It would take around two weeks to set up the portal equipment. Once the portal was activated, and if all went well, they would spend an additional three weeks researching the contents and general activity. They would not be allowed to go back up until the research was complete.

Two nights before he would go underground, Dipper called Mabel on his cellphone and let her know that she probably wouldn’t be hearing from him in a few weeks because of a “big project at work.” He skirted around the topic by telling her that if she didn’t hear from him by the beginning of the next year, to send a search party 

Dipper didn’t think he’d get very good cellphone service half a mile down the earth’s crust.

He still hadn’t seen or heard from Bill. He didn’t want to admit that deep down he was worried but here he was. Worried about Bill.

The night before he would go underground, Dipper stayed awake all night playing memory with two pots of coffee and an energy drink to keep him going.

But that only kept him occupied for so long and Dipper soon became antsy around three in the morning. He decided to read his uncle’s journals to pass the time.

Dipper was impressed by the amount of research and time put into the work his uncle did. Dipper never realized what strange creatures GF-Corp had housed and researched on. Eye bats, gnomes, trolls…Dipper was amazed by all of it. He was shocked that his uncle was able to complete two full journals by himself in the last few decades let alone a third one…

Which was when Dipper started wondering if his uncle _had_ completed his research alone…

Dipper was halfway through the second journal when he noticed something strange about the handwriting written in the outer sections of the pages. It was pretty inconsistent with his uncle’s flawless script and it seemed energetic rather than poised.

Dipper chalked it up to his uncle making quick notes as he was prone to.

Until it got really strange. The energetic handwriting became more prevalent next to his uncle’s sleek script to the point where it completely befell it. The flow of the journals, at one point smooth, was now choppy. As if something were missing.

Dipper checked the crease of the book’s binding and his heart froze in his chest. 

Pages had been _torn_ out.

 _‘What…?’_ Dipper took a shaky breath and flipped to the last page of the journal. There was a message on the inside of the back over, but it had been furiously scratched out to the point that whatever was written was illegible. Dipper closed the journal and placed it on the coffee table next to the first one. He checked his clock: 4:30 AM.

An hour later, he was pacing around the living room with one circular thought going through his head…

_‘Where’s the third journal?’_

* * *

 

_First day – going underground  
_

The next morning, Dipper arrived at the facility an hour earlier than he would have. He couldn’t even stomach the thought of having breakfast with his system going haywire from the caffeine still coursing through his system. 

He idly dragged himself to the rec room to wait out Soos’s arrival so that he could make a stop at his lab to grab his necessities before the security detail would escort him underground. As he entered the room, he made a bee-line for the couch and unceremoniously let himself fall into the most laziest of sits, resting his head on the back and his face gazing up towards the ceiling.

A few moments later, Dipper had this sneaky suspicion that he was being watched. He lifted his head to look around the room, nearly blanching at the sight of Bill staring at him intensely. 

He was standing stiff next to the table where they had played cards. The expression on his face was blank but his eyes were focused and the pupils were blown to the point that Dipper could see no color in the blonde’s eyes. 

He looked pissed off. 

And it scared the hell out of Dipper. If Bill could stare a hole through Dipper’s head, it would have happened at this point. 

Feeling extremely uncomfortable, Dipper slowly grabbed his duffle bag and stood up, his mind racing on how to get out of this now sticky situation. The only exit was through the rec room doors and with Bill standing five feet from them, Dipper felt like a deer in a clearing full of hunters. 

Bill still stood completely still by the table as Dipper carefully made his way to the door. Once Dipper came within reach of the threshold without incident, he thought maybe Bill would let him go quietly.

Then everything was a flash of movement.

Bill had intercepted the space between Dipper and the rec room doors so quickly it could have been considered inhuman. Bill slammed the rec room doors shut with a loud smack, locking them, and then quickly grabbed a chair, wedging it tightly underneath the handles.

Dipper, out of shock and now scared out of his mind, backed up quickly and tripped over the same table he had seen Bill stumble into a few months ago. He twisted around to avoid falling straight into another small table and landed harshly on his side. Quickly, he turned onto his back to keep his eye the man who had now had him trapped. _‘I’m gonna die…I’m gonna die…he’s really going to kill me…’_  

Once Bill seemed satisfied with securing the doors, he turned and faced Dipper with a desperate stare, “This is the only way now,” he mumbled hopelessly, “You haven’t even found it yet have you…?” 

Dipper was confused…this was not what he was expecting, “W-What…?!” he leaned up on his elbows and looked around frantically for something to use as a weapon. 

He could roll up a few magazines as weapons…yeah, right. 

Bill made a frustrated sound and gestured wildly to the room, “You **still** don’t understand! Even after all the breadcrumbs I’ve left for you!” There was a banging sound outside the rec room doors. Bill flinched at the noise and stared back at the doors with an aggravated look on his face. 

Dipper shook his head, “I don’t-“ 

Bill cut him off, his voice was shaky and barely above a whisper, “Come here…” 

 _‘Are you kidding me?!’_ Dipper didn’t move, “No….”

Bill rolled his eyes and made a pained noise, “I am trying…I am trying really hard not to just kill you…because that would be so merciful…” 

Dipper felt his heart racing and he inched backwards, “W-Why are you doing this…?”

None of this made sense. What the hell was Bill talking about?

Bill stared at Dipper for a few moments before his eyes closed, tears running down his cheeks and he turned his gaze up to the ceiling. The banging sounds outside the rec room were replaced with loud booms. Security would be in any second now. 

Bill sighed with a humorless smile and slowly reached into his pocket and pulled out his card deck, staring at it dejectedly before tossing it in Dipper’s direction, “This is your last chance, Pine Tree,” he said gravely as the deck landed with a thump on Dipper’s midsection. Bill walked over to the couch where Dipper was previously sitting and sat down, drawing his knees to his chest. He set his gaze ahead at the rec room doors with an intense focus, “I’ve already lost.” 

The rec room doors flew open with a loud bang and Ivan entered with Tats and Sprott, “Ah, Cipher, you know you are completely predictable in every way." 

Tats and the other larger security guard had carefully approached behind the couch where Bill was sitting with tasers ready. Bill remained calm and said nothing. He didn’t tear his eyes from the open doors and the threshold was now lined tightly with security personnel.

Ivan approached Bill, stopping just a few inches in front of the couch, “Are you going to give us any trouble, Cipher?”

Bill stayed still and silent as his gaze shifted down to the floor.

Ivan hummed and gestured to Tats as he walked away. Shortly after, Tats pumped a few high volts into crook of Bill’s neck with the taser.

Dipper felt nauseous as he saw Bill flinch sporadically before slumping over on the couch, his eyes closed. A medic who had been standing nearby was flagged over to administer a sedative. After that, the two security guards had no trouble securing Bill and with a quiet march, they strode out of the room with Bill in tow.

Dipper noticed Ivan turning to face him and he immediately tucked Bill’s card deck underneath his hip.

Ivan looked down at Dipper, “Are you alright, Dr. Pines?” 

Dipper gave a shaky nod and sat up carefully, “Y-Yes…um,” he felt compelled to play this up a bit, “I wasn’t expecting him to be that adamant…thank you…" 

Ivan hummed, “To be frank, Dr. Pines, I’m surprised he waited this long to act out.”

Dipper fluidly slipped the card deck into his back pocket as he stood, his voice shaky with anxiety, “We won’t expect any more issues like this, will we?” ‘ _Try to sound professional, Dipper, come on…'_  

Ivan shook his head, “I think not,” he waved his hand dismissively, “It should hardly matter once the project is underway.” He began to walk to the rec room doors where the crowd had cleared significantly, “Speaking of which,” he paused as he turned back around, “A detail team will meet you in two hours for your escort down below. It should be sufficient time for you to gather your belongings.”

Dipper nodded, “Yes, sir.” He watched Ivan and the security team make their haste departure. _‘Yeah…that should be plenty enough time.’_

* * *

 

“Not enough time!” Dipper cried out as he frantically closed the door to his office and dropped the duffle bag to the floor. 

He quickly fished out the card deck and emptied the cards onto the table, rummaging through them for anything odd.

The faces of the cards and the scratched out eyes caused a shiver to run down Dipper’s spine instantly. He went through each single one and found nothing. Dejected, he sat back in his office chair and dug the heels of his palms into his eyes frustratingly, “What the hell are you trying to show me, dammit!” 

Dipper closed his eyes as he went over the facts. Dipper understood that Bill was secretive and wouldn’t give anything important up very easily so some brainwork was more than required to figure this out.

But what did it all mean? Bill had always moved with a aura of coolness. As if he were the one in control and not the other way around. Even his slip-ups seemed to be on purpose and pre-planned. 

It was like when Bill had mismatched those cards in memory, breaking an infinite streak of matches. Dipper suspected that Bill had mismatched them on purpose… 

But why?

Dipper glanced down at the cards and noticed the queen and the jack that were in front of him. His eyes widened when he realized that those were the exact cards that Bill had mismatched. 

He took a closer look at the edges of both cards and noticed they were coming apart at the ends. Dipper leaned forward and picked up the queen, carefully pinching the two edges to peel the card apart. He took a deep breath as he read the text: 

 _Jlc xb vcrh zu lyv tqgi mf ayc_  

Dipper tried to remain composed as he took the jack.

_Keykae vrn bnswd gin upvxcm dqe udjrti bka_

Dipper hastily grabbed a piece of paper, copied the code, and after twenty minutes of scrambling, he came out with: 

_TRY TO FIND ME_

_OUR GAME IS KEY_

_BEWARE THE BLIND EYE_

_UNLOCK THE STARRY SKY_  

Dipper read and reread the message until it was a mantra. He checked the clock. One hour before the detail would arrive. 

He had to hurry.

Dipper paced in his office as he attempted to decipher the message Bill had left him. _‘Our game is key…’_ Key. Game. Bill said he played games. Dipper plays games. Bill and Dipper played games. They played cards. At the rec room. Key. Game is key. _‘The game is the key?’_ Dipper stopped, _‘The key is the game…what game…card game?...Memory…’_

Memory. Yes, that was it! 

“Memory is the key,” Dipper murmured, “But is it literal…or symbolic…?” He considered what Bill had said in his dream about security erasing people’s memories.

Memory is key. 

Dipper thought about the second part of the message. The blind eye message seemed obvious. By erasing people’s memories, security had essentially ‘blinded’ everyone’s perception about what was right in front of them. 

The last part of the message left Dipper stuck. _‘Unlock the starry sky…’_ To Dipper, that could have meant anything. Memory, blind eye, security, starry sky…how did a starry sky relate to the others? It stood out among them… 

Stand out. Dipper remembered the painting in the hall on the first floor. How it stood out among the white halls of the unused part of the facility. He remembered when Bill had asked him about his favorite painting on the first floor and Bill’s satisfactory grin when Dipper mentioned it. 

Like he _knew_ Dipper would choose that painting. 

Bill had also said it was one of the few places that security “didn’t have its eyes…” 

 _‘Unlock the starry sky…’_ The journal was either behind the painting…or his next clue was there.

Dipper raced out of his office and down the hall. He had thirty minutes now.

* * *

 

Dipper stood in front of the painting and carefully leaned forward to run his hand over the canvas. Looking in either direction, Dipper carefully grabbed the sides of the frame and gently lifted the painting from the wall.

There was plaster covering a small spot on the wall and Dipper leaned forward and rapped on it with his knuckles. An echoing sound reverberating behind the plaster. 

It was hollow.

Dipper began to press against the spot intently, trying to find a spot where it opened. When his fingers brushed over what felt like an indentation, he pressed further. 

Once he was able to latch onto the dent, he pulled forcefully until the plaster gave way and the wall was open to reveal a small safe-like hole.

Sitting inside, a book similar to his uncle’s first two journals. Only with a gold-embossed, six-fingered hand with the number three in black ink.

Dipper took a shaky breath as removed the journal and quelled every desire to just sit right there and read it. He tucked it under his arm as he closed the hole back up and set the painting back on the wall.

Once he was back in his office, he shoved the journal into his duffle bag. Shortly after, the security detail arrived to bring him underground.

* * *

 


	11. Floor Eight

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dipper spends his first day in the depths of the facility where he will undertake a big project that will change his life forever.

_First day - 11 AM_

The trip to the underground wasn’t as awe-inspiring as Dipper thought it would be. Although he was excited to see the different creatures and anomalies he had heard and read about, there was a sense of dread and darkness hanging in the air when he arrived.

But that could have just been his nerves.

A lot had happened in the last few hours and Dipper wasn’t certain if he would be coming back to the surface to talk about it. Just the idea weighed heavily on his mind.

Going through security on the fifth floor was no different than security on the first floor. The only difference was the guards. The manataur was definitely _not_ a rumor, and to Dipper those guys were scary enough just standing there looking at you--much less administering the pat down.

Once Dipper was past security, they went to the set of elevators that would take them down to the eighth floor. Dipper kept his duffle close to him and he could feel the weight of the third journal in more ways than one.

The elevator door opened to reveal a wide, empty lobby. Tats stepped out of the elevator and gestured to Dipper, “The eighth floor hasn’t been in use in ten years. The only ones allowed down here are you, the owner, and security. First, we’ll drop you off at the dormitory where you’ll be staying. This way.”

Dipper nodded as he followed Tats. The eighth floor was darker than the higher floors. While the lighting wasn’t too bright, it wasn’t completely dull either. There also didn’t appear to be any sheetrock lining the walls, rather, it was just cement and plywood.

Tats continued speaking as they turned a corner and faced a set of rooms, “These are the rooms where you’ll be sleeping. Restrooms are across the hall. There’s gonna be some kind of orientation in the kitchen once the others arrive so it’s best you get set up and situated and meet them there. I’ll show you the way.”

Dipper went to the room that was in front of him and hesitated as he set his duffle bag down, “Um…is it okay to leave this here or can I take it with me?” Dipper was paranoid about coming back the journal being gone…

Tats quirked an eyebrow, “Are you going to need it?”

Dipper realized he was getting into a dangerous conversation, “Uh…no, never mind,” he chuckled nervously, “I just get a little nervous leaving my stuff unattended…you know.”

Tats shook his head, “Weird. The kitchen is this way,” he gestured for Dipper to follow.

Dipper kicked his duffle under the bed and hoped it would still be there when he got back.

He followed Tats to the kitchen. It was small but there was a table, a fridge, a microwave, and a toaster. Tats opened the freezer, “There’s enough frozen dinners in here for three weeks. When you see it’s running low just put in a request to me or Sprott and we’ll fill an order in. You are not permitted to leave unless for an emergency.”

Dipper walked over to the kitchen table and sat down, he was starting to feel claustrophobic, “I understand." Dipper wanted nothing more than to read the third journal. The anxiety was making him fidgety.

Five minutes later, Gideon and Bud had entered the kitchen and took their seats at the end of the table. Gideon, for once, ignored Dipper altogether, much to Dipper’s relief. It wasn’t long before Fiddleford and Ford entered the room. Ford looked less than pleased now that he was here. Dipper gave him a reassuring smile as Ford took the seat next to him.

It didn’t seem to help much.

When Blendin arrived, he seemed to be the only person who was excited to be there, “Okay, gentlemen!” he excitedly set his briefcase on the countertop, “Let’s discuss the plans!”

Dipper sighed, _‘Here we go…’_  


* * *

_Eight hours later_

Dipper just spent the last few hours assisting everyone in assembling the equipment for the portal. The control panel had been the hardest, surprisingly. Connecting it to the portal’s mechanism wasn’t as easy as Dipper had thought.

And Gideon was of no help without his team of scientists, so he mostly barked orders at everyone. Which was probably safer.

When it was all finished, Dipper had stepped back in awe. The room they were in was the size of a stadium but to Dipper, it was like being in a giant basement. Floor lights were set up since there was no lighting system.

This place was apparently ground zero for all the strange anomalies in Gravity Falls. This place is what the facility was built around.

The makeshift gateway that would serve as the portal was shaped like an inverted triangle and was no taller than a basketball hoop system.  Lining the outer rim of the center circle were the Behenian stars symbols. On either side of the portal were two chambers that would fuel the energy used to “open” the weak spot in their dimension.

“They’ll probably have us go in one at a time for thirty seconds minimum,” Ford explained to Dipper privately, “We’ll have lifelines that we’ll tug if there are any issues, if it’s worse than that, I don’t know what’ll happen…”

Dipper felt a pang of fear at that, “What if the portal shuts down…?”

Ford shrugged, “I won’t let them make you go in there if you don’t feel comfortable. I won’t let them put you in danger.”

  
Once they were finished and dismissed, Dipper returned to his small room and collapsed on the bed. He gazed over at a small box one of the security personnel had given him at orientation. It contained the safety gear he would have to wear the next day when they activated the portal. A pair of UV goggles, gloves, and an indestructible rubber-based rope wasn’t as assuring as he thought it should be.

He sighed as he rolled onto his back. He figured he probably wouldn’t sleep but he closed his eyes anyway.

Sleep actually came easier than he thought. And he was in his favorite place. The planetarium.

He looked up when he heard creaking in the seat behind him, “Hello?”

Silence. Dipper sat up and turned around in his chair.

Bill was sitting in the seat behind him, his gaze fixed to the ceiling. His eyes weren’t glowing blue like last time but he seemed so focused.

Dipper wondered if he knew that he was even here, “Bill?”

Bill’s eyes shifted as he looked around in apparent surprise and bewilderment, “Huh?” he glanced quickly at Dipper and then back to the ceiling, “Oh wow…it worked…”

Dipper squinted, “What worked…?”

Bill smiled as he stood from the seat and looked around in awe, “I’m in your mind…”

“You’ve done it before…” Dipper watched as Bill climb over the seat next to Dipper and fell in it, “What makes this time different…? I see your eyes aren’t… glowing anymore…”

Bill looked at him, “Really? Huh…” he looked down at his hands, “Well, when they took me away…the sedative they gave me was stronger than usual,” his voice sounded tired, “When I’m under it I can’t really focus on mind hopping, obviously…” Dipper’s eyes widened when Bill seemed to fizzle out before he came back. Bill chuckled, “I’m still really weak I guess.”

Dipper nodded and reclined his chair, deciding to change the subject, “I found the journal.”

“I know,” Bill rolled his eyes, “I’m not congratulating you, though, you should have found it weeks ago.”

Dipper rolled his eyes, “Yes, because I’m supposed to pay attention to every move you make,” he said sarcastically.

Bill hummed, “Everything I do has meaning. It’s not my fault you take things lightly. I might also add that I’m currently in a pad-locked cell strapped to a gurney until I wake up all because _someone_ couldn’t pick up the breadcrumbs I left.”

“You didn’t have to lock us in the rec room! You could have told me some other way…”

Bill sneered, “ _No_ , Pine Tree,” he glared, “There was no other way. Security has ears everywhere and eyes nearly everywhere in the facility. If I had been even a little bit more obvious with my trail, you’d be wondering how you got to the bus station the next town over.”

Dipper laughed, “And locking us in the rec room wasn’t obvious enough?”

Bill shrugged, “Most of them already believe I’m crazy. It wasn’t that out of character….”

Dipper couldn’t believe this was actually real. Bill was actually here in his mind and they were having a logical-ish conversation. Which meant the last dream was the same way. It was a lot to process but Dipper decided he would deal with that later. He wanted answers.

“Okay…like I said, I found the journal. So what’s the next step?”

Bill let out a frustrated sigh and pinched the bridge of his nose, “You obviously didn’t read it yet. I can’t hold your hand through all of this, you know.” He looked up at the ceiling as the galaxies flew overhead.

Dipper sighed as he followed Bill’s gaze, “Look, honestly, I’m a little worried about reading it. This project is stressing me out enough…can’t you like, give me a hint or something?” Before Bill could retort Dipper held his hands up, “I don’t have anyone to talk to down here, and I can’t really escape where someone can’t follow. I have no space…”

Bill looked at Dipper blankly as he seemed to consider Dipper’s request, “Well…I may be able to help you out a bit...but I don’t think you’ll like it.”

Dipper looked at Bill curiously, “Why?”

Bill avoided the question, “I don’t even think I have enough energy to pull it off truthfully. You should really just read the journal.”

“Well…what’s your plan?”

Bill pulled his legs up and tapped his knee, “I was going to show you what happened ten years ago…but from my perspective as I saw it happen.”

“Oh.” 

“Yeah,” Bill rolled his eyes again, “I don’t think you could handle it.”

Dipper nodded slowly, he wasn’t sure if he wanted to see that, “Right…so read the third journal, got it.”

They shared a small silence for a while before Bill pointed to the ceiling, “There’s your constellation.” He was pointing at the Big Dipper.

Dipper chuckled, “Yeah…” he thought for a moment before venturing a question, “So, do you want this project to go forward or not? I mean…how do you feel about it?”

Bill was quiet for a few seconds before he spoke calmly, “It’s a necessary evil.”

“What do you mean?”

“You’ll be seeing me soon,” he looked over at Dipper, his eyes starting to glow, “But it won’t be here.”

Dipper was about to ask what he meant by that but as he sat up in his theatre seat he appeared to wake up in his small dormitory. He pinched himself.

Yep. He was awake.

He was getting sick of these almost answers. Every meeting with Bill was learning something new but with more questions following. It was like learning nothing and everything at the same time.

Dipper checked his watch to see that he had, as last time, been asleep for only fifteen minutes. He took a deep breath and reached under his bed for his duffle and rummaged through it, pulling out the journal.

Maybe it was just the mystery surrounding it, but the journal seemed to have some kind of darkness about it, an element of danger. Dipper opened the first flap carefully and removed the monocle piece from the spine. Why was there a monocle in this journal…?

The handwriting on the pages wasn’t as neat as the first two but it definitely belonged to his uncle. Dipper read through various scribbles about how the portal was to be built and what they would research. Apparently the owner had found some kind of object that didn’t belong in this dimension and was interested in finding the missing piece. Dipper mused over the drawing of the object that his uncle had drawn. It was shaped like an orb with a suspended triangle floating inside…though there was nothing written about it.

As Dipper continued to read his uncle’s chronicles of the first portal, the more he understood why his uncle was subconsciously opposed to activating it. Evidently the first portal’s failure was so bad it nearly destroyed the entire town. The immense energetic output was so powerful it affected the gravity in the surrounding areas. There were some reports the buildings had come off their foundations.

_“We started the portal. So far, nothing unusual. It glows a bright blue…”_

_“Wow! The gravitational pull was exceptionally strong! We have reports that buildings nearly came off their foundations! Our building is fine however… Security said they would take care of things to make sure this stays under wraps. We’ve come too far to risk it all now.”_

This seemed to be before Bill went into the portal. There were writings about how his uncle’s colleagues were skeptical about continuing with the project after the gravity issue so Dipper assumed he hadn’t read the worst of it yet.

 _“_ [name scratched out] _is skeptical about continuing with the project. He believes it to be too dangerous for all of us but I know he’s curious about what lies ahead. Security is concerned he will walk away… I think everything will be fine…”_

 _“Everyone is worried. I seem to be the only one able to keep it together._ [name scratched out] _burned my reports right in front of me. He won’t talk to anyone… what is happening to my team?”_

When he turned the next page, the writing was frantic. There was a neat note that read:

_“We’re starting it up again today. The gravitational issue seems to be fixed. Hopefully all will go well.”_

After that passage,

“[name scratched out] _just walked into the portal like it was nothing…he wasn’t affected by the gravitational pull at all! He came out thirty seconds later after a bright flash of light. He’s just standing there…not moving. We’re all trying not to be pulled in but he’s just standing there. His lifeline is gone…how is this possible?”_

_He’s speaking something strange…“YVDZIV…YORMW VBV…GRNV” Is this Atbash…? …we had to keep him from breaking the machine…his eyes are glowing a blue color similar to that of the portal. Did he absorb its energy somehow?_

_He’s becoming unstable…security personnel and a medical team are trying to calm him…he’s screaming at me…what is he saying?_

_He looks terrifying like this._

_“IVNVNYVI NV”…I’ll have to look into my Atbash notes when I get above ground…it seems this project is coming to a close for now. They just took him away._

_The portal will have to wait. Security wants to investigate the cause of the portal’s malfunctions. We will all be questioned._

_The greatest scientists have made the greatest mistakes on their road to success. But this…this should have never happened. We’ve gone too far…_

That was the last note. Dipper didn’t have to ask what security’s questioning entailed. He closed the book and placed it back in the duffle.

According the contents of journal, Bill was right. Ford didn’t remember the event exactly the way he initially described to Dipper. And based on that assumption, neither did Fiddleford.

But Dipper _still_ couldn’t figure out Bill’s motives for all of this. He thought it made sense that Bill wanted the project to be abandoned. After all, Bill had gone through the portal, seemingly lost his memories of who he was, witnessed what could have been the end of the world, and was now basically a prisoner in the facility.

It made sense that he wouldn’t want anyone else to go through that.

But then again Bill’s objective didn’t seem very catered to anyone’s wellbeing…Dipper figured that much after the explosion in his lab.

Dipper still wondered why Bill’s plans had changed when they met in the elevator that day. The specimen Bill had switched out still detonated…but what purpose did that serve…?

Dipper got headaches thinking about it. He remembered a few months ago when he was examining the specimen Blendin had sent him. That specimen essentially stabilized once the radioactive generator had fueled it.

When they discussed the plans earlier, they were to use that specimen to jumpstart the portal and use the radioactive generator to keep it running. The problem was how they were going to keep the portal running independently when the radioactive generators ran out.

That was where Dipper’s research had come in. The specimen Blendin sent him was able to sustain itself without the help of the generator for five minutes before it fizzled out. Dipper had theorized that it would need a similar source to keep itself stable. After all, a boulder could hold another equally sized boulder.

Dipper was still curious about how similar that specimen was to the one that detonated in his office months ago. Were they the same thing?

Dipper thought back to his recent dreams…Bill’s glowing eyes resembled the specimen’s colors…

And based on these journal entries, Ford speculated that Bill may have potentially _absorbed_  the energy from the portal…

So was Bill a container for the portal’s energy…or something _from_ the portal?

_“You’ll be seeing me soon…but not here…”_

Dipper’s eyes widened when he realized, _‘Are they going to use Bill to stabilize the portal?!’_

* * *

 

_Ten days later_

_Tenth day underground_

“Honestly, we should have been up and running days ago!”

Dipper knew was going to throttle Gideon before all this was over. He was surprised that after ten days, no one had at least gagged the bastard. Couldn’t he tell they were all frustrated with the little progress they made?

The team had attempted to activate the portal within the first five days. The first day, the portal flashed a bright light and a few rocks in the room began floating before the portal shut down again after three seconds. Dipper didn’t admit it but he almost pissed himself when he levitated off the ground for three seconds.

On the second day, they tried again, this time attempting to balance out the gravitational malfunctions. It worked, but only for a few minutes. The portal was activated successfully for five minutes before fizzling out.

After that, they couldn’t get it to start again.

Ford suspected they didn’t have enough radioactive energy to maintain the portal and now they were waiting for clearance to get additional gallons.

Apparently the process of acquiring and transporting more than 100 gallons of radioactive waste required more than a few security checks from the U.S. government. Thankfully, the facility was able to ensure the government they weren’t going to use it for destructive purposes. It took an entire week to get the clearance.

The only issue was the feds now had them under their watch.

Dipper was _thrilled_ about that new piece of information.

As the gallons of radioactive waste were being rolled in, Dipper walked over to his uncle, “Do you think it’s safe to even consider entering the portal at this point…?”

Ford shook his head, “There’s nothing about this that’s safe, Dipper, nothing.” The tone of Ford’s voice indicated he was not in the mood to chat.

Dipper said nothing and turned away from his uncle. Dipper wondered if Ford really remembered the incident or if he was just playing it up.

Dipper walked over to Fiddleford who was typing furiously on his laptop, “Hey, Dr. F, any change in the data?”

“Nope,” Fiddleford grabbed at sheets of paper feeding out of the machine, “Everything’s stable for now, as long as the control panel is spitting out these codes here, we don’t have to worry. Once these numbers change though…we need to make sure we document everything. Any change in frequency could make all the difference when we turn that machine on.”

Dipper analyzed the sheets and the codes, thinking back to the number codes that Bill had left him a few months ago.

It seemed like simpler times…

Gideon whined, “Will we be able to activate it soon?”

Bud Gleeful, who had been watching from a distance, stepped in, “Now, now, have patience, Gideon,” he sounded scared talking to his own son, “You know these things take time…”

Gideon glared in his father’s direction, “ _Time_ is the point of this mission!”

Dipper glanced up, “Wait…what? What do you mean by that?”

Gideon turned up his nose, “It’s nothing you need concern yourself with, _Dr. Pines_ ,” he sneered, “Just get the portal up and running so we can get to the next step already!”

Dipper glared, “Look, we’re doing the best we can, which is more than what we can say for what you’ve brought to the table,” Dipper ended on a mumble, “…besides being a complete asshole,” Dipper ignored the warning looks from his uncle, “So just…let us do our jobs and stay out of our hair.”

Gideon was about to yell when Bud put a hand on his shoulder, “Son, just be patient…”

Gideon grumbled and stomped off angrily, muttering under his breath. Bud gave Dipper a hard stare before following after his son.

Fiddleford shook his head and mumbled, “Something’s not right about this…I don’t know what it is but I don’t trust it one bit, Dipper…”

Dipper nodded, “I don’t understand it either. What did he mean when he said time is the point of the mission?”

Fiddleford shook his head, “Guess we find out when the moment comes, yes?”

Dipper wasn’t sure if he wanted to wait that long…

Ford interrupted, “I think we should hold off activating the portal again until tomorrow,” he ignored Gideon’s hard glare, “With as much fuel as we’ve received, this should be more than enough to keep the portal running for a week at most. I think it’s best that we all rest up because once that portal is activated, we’ll have to spend all our time collecting as much data as possible while it’s running.”

Blendin, who had been monitoring the data on the machine with Fiddleford quietly, nodded in agreement, “That sounds like a good plan. It’s perfect timing as well because the owner will be stopping by tomorrow to see how everything goes. Also, security is bringing in backup just incase the fuel won’t be enough.”

This was new. Dipper seemed skeptical, “I thought the owner was super secretive…and what kind of backup are they bringing?”

Blendin shook his head, “Nah,” he grinned, “He’s been looking forward to this moment for over ten years, he wants a front row seat. And he’s helping to fund the project so I guess he wants to check on his investment. As far as the backup, I think we’ll just have to wait and see.” There was flash in Blendin’s eyes that Dipper didn’t trust.

Ford grunted, “Well, in any case, as long as he stays within the boundary, it should be no problem. If everything goes to hell…well…at least I can know this project won’t come back a third time…if we all go down with it.”

Dipper frowned. His uncle had been impossibly morose since the project was announced and it was hard to look him in the eye much less talk to him. It didn’t help that Dipper was already anxious about what the next step was after the portal was activated.

And with the owner visiting tomorrow along with the activation of the portal, Dipper didn't have a good feeling about any of it.

* * *

_Later that evening_

Dipper was lying on his bed and reading over his uncle’s third journal again. As much as he read, Dipper had no idea where this portal mission was leading them. All he could gather was that the owner was searching for a missing piece to some kind of object in his possession. What that object did, Dipper didn’t know.

But according to Bill’s messages, it didn’t sound good.

Dipper thought for sure that they were going to use Bill…or whatever kind of power Bill possessed…to stabilize the portal once it was running.

 _‘This is insane…_ ’ Dipper rubbed his forehead tiredly and considered trying to sleep.

Until a voice sounded right into his ears, _‘I think it’s time you see something…’_

Dipper’s eyes shot open and he sat upright so fast his vision spun. “The hell?!” He looked around and pinched himself, wincing, “I’m not asleep…” his eyes widened as he realized, “Bill?! How are you doing this?!”

Bill chuckled, his laughter echoing in Dipper’s ears, _‘Oh, I’m getting a lot better now, Pine Tree.’_

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Updating tonight because I won't have time to get to it tomorrow. 
> 
> Also, there WILL be an update on TUESDAY (10/20).


	12. The Cipher Tale

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Don't you want to actually see what happened ten years ago?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Listening music if you're interested:
> 
> "Dark" - Breaking Benjamin  
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0h6HYapOR-M
> 
> I had this song on repeat while writing this chapter.
> 
> Thank you, Erasmus.
> 
> Warning: This chapter has depictions of PTSD.

_‘You need to calm down, Pine Tree.’_

Dipper didn’t realize he was starting to hyperventilate until his chest felt tight as he tried to take a breath. He moved his hands away from his ears and closed his eyes tightly as he fell back on the bed.

This wasn’t logical at all! As his breathing evened out, Dipper focused on the ceiling and wished he was in his mindscape with the planetarium.

It had gone quiet for a moment before Bill spoke again, jarring Dipper out of his short reverie, _‘Okay…Pine Tree…this is what’s going to happen…I’ve been thinking it over and I decided that I have to show you something.’_ Bill sounded hesitant.

Dipper took a shaky breath, “O-Okay?”

_‘You’re probably not going to like it but…this will help us both I think…I need you to close your eyes and think of the planetarium.’_

Dipper hesitated, he felt like he could cry, “W-Why…?”

Bill chuckled and it echoed in Dipper’s head. _‘I love that question. It’s my favorite one. But you’ll just have to trust me.’_

Dipper shook his head, “I don’t have a choice do I?”

 _‘You absolutely do. We can do this or we won’t. But haven’t you wanted to know what_ really _happened ten years ago? I can show you.’_

Dipper sighed, Bill pitched like an expert salesmen, “Yeah…”

 _‘Then close your eyes,’_ there was no irritation in Bill’s voice, _‘And think of the planetarium.’_

* * *

The planetarium was a bit different than the last few times. There were no seats, no projector, only the dome ceiling which showcased the starry expanse of the universe.

The room was essentially an empty stadium. But it was still just as beautiful and calming.

Bill came into focus where the projector would’ve have been and Dipper flinched at the sight of him.

Bill looked _really_ rough. He was in the attire he normally wore at the facility except it was messier than usual. His hair looked like he had been thrashing his head about for hours and the bags under his eyes were so dark they looked like a bruises.

For all Dipper knew, they could have been.

“Hey, Pine Tree,” Bill’s voice was grated but he greeted Dipper with a smile, “Don’t mind my appearance…” He chuckled nervously.

Dipper shook his head and hoped he wasn’t gaping too obviously at Bill’s condition, “Um…it’s fine,” he suddenly felt awkward, “But…are you alright?”

Bill laughed, “I don’t know what that means but I’m here,” he gestured around the room, “I couldn’t completely make the scene in your head…but I think that’s for the better honestly. I’m about to use a lot of energy anyway…” Bill held up one finger, “But...before I do anything, I’m going to ask a favor of you.”

Dipper squinted, “Um…what kind of favor?”

“I need a scalpel…or a knife,” Bill deadpanned.

Dipper recoiled, “I…wait…a scalpel?! What the hell for?!”

Bill set him with a hard stare, “That’s for me to know and you to find out. Do we have a deal?”

Dipper let out a humorless laugh, he knew he had his Swiss army knife in his duffle bag but Bill’s request was still extremely odd and suspicious, “Dude, what good would that do you in here?”

Bill shook his head, “It doesn’t matter, as long you as you can get it to me when I need it,” Bill moved towards Dipper, extending his hand, “Let’s shake on it.”

Dipper hesitated momentarily before he extended his arm to shake Bill’s hand, meeting it with a firm shake, “Alright."

Bill grinned as he released Dipper’s hand and stepped closer, “Okay, are you ready?” He moved directly in front of Dipper.

Dipper jumped and backed away quickly, raising his hands defensively, “Wait!” Dipper realized he didn’t mean to shout and he muttered a quick apology when Bill flinched, “I just…what exactly are you going to show me…? I know you said it would be what happened ten years ago…but what can I expect out of this?”

Bill looked in either direction thoughtfully, his eyes full of uncertainty, “There’s no answer I can give you that would be better explained by what you’ll see,” he spoke softly as he cautiously walked closer, “You’ll just have to let me do this…”

Dipper wasn’t satisfied with that answer but he figured it was the best he was going to get. Especially from Bill. He took in a deep breath and looked up at the stars as he considered. He had always wanted answers to everything and he figured this was no different than his other ventures. Dipper exhaled and nodded, “Okay…show me…”

Bill nodded and placed his hands on either side of Dipper’s face, “Close your eyes again...you’ll feel like you want to fall, just let it happen. I’ll be watching. Remember, they’re only memories…like old light from dead stars…”

Dipper closed his eyes and all of a sudden he felt a jolt as the scene changed from the planetarium to somewhere else.

Where it was, it was colder. When Dipper opened his eyes, he noticed it was the same room on the eighth floor where the portal was built. It looked a lot brighter than where they had the current portal.

Dipper realized that this was from ten years ago.

When Dipper stared down, he noticed a desk in front of him. There were pages and graphs with scribbles that Dipper couldn’t focus on as he was looking around at the blurry room. There were voices coming from all around him but they were garbled and strange.

He had an overwhelming urge to find a reflective surface and when he looked at the metallic finish of the portal equipment, he noticed Bill’s reflection instead of his own.

That was more than a little jarring.

Dipper had no time to ruminate on the strangeness of being in Bill’s head as he was suddenly levitating in the air, a bright blue light flashing from the portal. He looked down slowly when he felt pressure on his midsection and saw a rubber rope keeping him tethered to the wall. The lifelines.

When Dipper looked up and saw the portal, it was fully activated and giving off loud noises of working metal and whizzing machines. It was flashing bright colors and the Behelian star symbols were glowing in consecutive intervals for a few moments until they stabilized as the portal quieted down in a steady pulse. The color maintained an electric blue and Dipper suddenly felt drawn to it like a moth.

Then there were whispers in his ears that were telling him to remove the rope and come closer. He registered that these voices were _coming_ from the portal. The energy output felt calming and warm…

A memory of being called in for sweet lemonade after playing outside all day…he had looked down at a scraped knee and a dozen fire ant bites. A whisper in his ear, _She’ll fix you up…_

Dipper felt confused, was that his memory…? His mother never made lemonade…he had never been bitten by fire ants…

 _Come here, she’ll fix you up._ God that was hard to ignore. The voice was so soothing.

_Don’t you want to go home? You miss it, don’t you? Come home…_

Flashes of a house out in the countryside…caring eyes…gentle hands, comforting hugs, and a kiss on the forehead. The rope was slowly removed and those garbled voices became louder and more demanding. He jerked away when a hand grabbed his arm and tried to pull him back.

He was getting closer to the portal and the voice…it wasn’t English…but he understood it. _You’re not happy here so come home._

Blue tendrils emerged from the portal and they gently caressed his arms to coax him closer.

He crossed the threshold of the portal and a cold spat of air hit him in the face. He felt an icy cold all over his body. There was no air…no oxygen…but he was still breathing…

He looked around at the expanse of the universe as the blue tendrils cleared his vision. He could see stars and planets in the distance. The silence was deafening… This was impossible.

If Bill entered space he should have been dead…

Then, there was nothing but burning.

Voices in Atbash were _screaming_ on either side of his ears and he tried to bring his hands up to cover them to no avail, he felt paralyzed. It was loud…too loud…

Then visions flashed in front of his eyes. Helicopters, police sirens, explosions, a glowing orb, and then…

Burning cities, destroyed towns, and a large tower. Inside said tower, a man overlooking the expanse of the destruction.

He couldn’t see the man’s face…couldn’t make out the silhouette. He looked down when he felt something in the palm of his hand. A glowing orb with an hourglass hovering inside.

Then, a voice in his right ear speaking clearly, _‘In the land of the blind, the one-eyed man is king…’_

All of a sudden, he was being jerked around violently and his vision was shaking. He closed his eyes and willed to be over quickly. He felt something flooding his veins, it was warm and cold at once and this was it. He was going to die.

The house in the countryside passed his vision one last time. A woman watched sadly as she went out of focus.

Then, a flash behind his eyelids and he was holding his own weight, staring at the floor in front of the portal, the yellow caution line in his focus in front of him.

The garbled voices were becoming clearer…they were telling him to get away from the portal. They were calling his name…

What was his name again…? He couldn’t hear…

He looked down again. He was still holding the orb. He grabbed it with both hands, opened it, and took out the hourglass. His hands started glowing at the points where his skin made contact with the object.

Then he broke the hourglass in half and threw it back towards the portal.

The next thing he knew he was facing three security guards and the portal was shut down.

The room was now dark and cold. There were rocks falling in random places. People were shouting that they needed to get out before the floor collapsed. News was apparently coming in that the whole town was reporting damage from some kind of gravitational event…

Ford was staring at him desperately.

Dipper screamed…no… _Bill_ screamed…Bill was screaming at him and Dipper understood now…

The phrase in the journal…

_Ivnvnyvi nv._

_Remember me._

Then he was grabbed none too gently and he felt a piercing sting in his arm as he was thrown to the floor. His throat was sore…had he been screaming this whole time?

There was another pull as Dipper was pulled out of Bill’s head and watching what looked like Bill being strapped to a gurney.

The medics secured him all the way from his ankles to the top of his head. As he was rolled away, Dipper was following as if he were chained to the gurney.

He wondered why he had changed perspectives all of a sudden…

Security personnel rushed past him. There was talk of how the entire perimeter of the town had to be memory wiped and that they could amplify the signal from one of the towers outside the building. One of the guards nodded and opted to ‘get right on it.’

Dipper turned his attention back to Bill who was frantically trying to speak about the portal and what he saw. No one seemed to pay him any mind and the medics were attempting to calm Bill down. Dipper watched as they bypassed security all the way to the first floor where Bill was rolled to the medical sector.

No one noted Dipper’s presence. He was like a ghost.

In the medic’s room, Bill had quieted significantly and seemed to be struggling to stay awake when a booming voice came in for the medics to clear out.

It was Ivan. He had a strange looking device in his hand that resembled a gun…but with a bulb attached at the end. He approached Bill at his side, looking down at him, “Do you remember your name?”

Bill opened his mouth to speak but before he could, Ivan quickly placed the bulb of the weapon near Bill’s head and a bright light flashed through Bill’s eyes, “I…I…I remember…”

Ivan was calm and acted as if he didn’t just _shoot_ Bill with whatever that thing was, “What do you remember?”

Bill’s voice was frantic, “Lemonade…I have to go inside…I scraped my knee…”

Ivan activated the weapon again and Bill jerked about on the table.

Bill’s eyes were filled with tears, “…I just have to go inside…she’ll be upset if I don’t listen again…”

Ivan spoke calmly, “Who will be upset?”

Bill stared up at the ceiling as tears ran down his face, “You’re taking it away from me…why?”

“Taking what away? What’s your name?” Ivan was about to activate the weapon again until Bill fixed him with a hard stare.

Bill’s voice changed the atmosphere in the air as he screamed angrily, “STOP IT!” His eyes were glowing a furious red as he glared at Ivan.

Ivan glared right back, “I’ll ask you one last time. What. Is. Your. Name.”

Bill maintained his hard glare and his breathing was ragged, “You know my name.” Then he smirked, “My name’s Bill Cipher.”

Ivan leaned back and stared at Bill, “That’s a lie. Did you come from the portal?”

Bill turned away and closed his eyes, “I was out the portal, I was in the portal, I was out the portal.” He said it in an airy, sing-song inflection and Dipper wasn’t sure why Bill’s personality took a sharp degree turn…was this even the same person?

Ivan grumbled, “Are you still who you used to be? Or are you possessing him?”

Dipper watched in horror as a wide grin spread along Bill’s face, “Maybe it’s both,” Bill’s voice sounded…like it was coming through a fan…it sent a shiver down Dipper’s spine.

Ivan fumbled with the device’s settings, “No matter, in a few moments you won’t remember the last few years or anything from the last few moments,” he set the bulb to Bill’s cranium and triggered it. When he pulled it away he analyzed Bill’s relaxed face and closed eyes, “Are you awake?”

Bill opened his eyes slowly and Dipper was astonished to see his pupils were blown out and the whites of his eyes appeared to be glowing yellow, “Of course, you just tried to erase my memories of the last few years but as I can recall, I went into a portal, saw something you really didn’t want anyone to see, and now I’m trying really hard not to laugh at your pathetic attempts at erasing it. I’m a lot more powerful than you, silly man. And you know it. Or else you would have killed me by now.”

Ivan glared, “We’ll see about that,” he activated the weapon again. It seemed to send a shock through Bill at this point but the blonde just laughed as if he was being tickled.

Eventually though, Ivan stopped and Bill’s demeanor took another 180 as the laughter morphed into ragged breaths, “Please stop…I can’t…I can’t remember anything…”

Ivan noticed this change and regarded Bill carefully, “Who am I speaking to?”

Bill looked at him and shook his head, “I know where I am…I know why I’m here…I remember…the project…” he looked around the room as best he could, “Am I dead…? I have to be dead…was I dreaming?”

Ivan was silent for a few moments before walking around the table, placing the weapon back in his coat, “You died,” he rounded the other side of the table, “But you’ve come back miraculously like Lazarus…now, do you remember your name? What’s your name? What do your colleagues call you? Do you remember them?”

Bill’s eyes shifted, “I died…no I didn’t’ die!…I went in the portal…” he gulped as he looked at the ceiling in concentration, tears were falling from his eyes, “My colleagues…um, Glasses…” he shook his head, “No, that’s not his name…um…Fiddleford, yes, that’s it…he helped with the equipment…I can’t remember the others…they were from the gravity and physics department…um…” Bill struggled and seemed pained as he tried to recall everyone, “Stanford P-Pines…he helped with the configurations…and…me…”

Ivan nodded, “Yes? What did you do?”

“I work in the Energy department...I found the weak spot in our dimension…and…I configured the means to get the portal up and running…”

“And what’s your name?”

“You know my name…” Bill's face fell and he looked like he was going to fall asleep. But then Bill glanced up at Ivan confidently and with a hint of that manic personality from earlier, “My name is Bill Cipher."

Ivan squinted, “That is _not_ your name. You seem to have truly lost yourself, my boy. What a shame.”

Bill turned his gaze away and closed his eyes, “Oh, don’t kid yourself...if I didn’t have all this power stored inside me, you wouldn’t even care about my real name…you would have killed me a long time ago. In fact, you _are_ going to kill me…maybe not _me_ …but I know what it implies.”

Ivan smirked, “Well, you know what that means for you from now on, doesn’t it?” Ivan continued when Bill made no sound of acknowledgment, “That means your GF-Corp’s property now, one of our experiments. It means you won’t be going anywhere for as long as you’re alive.” Ivan turned to head out the room, “Whatever family you have outside won’t even remember you were born or ever existed in the first place.”

Ivan took out his gun and showed it to Bill, “We’ll see you again once the dust settles, come morning no one will remember a thing about you, ‘Bill Cipher.’” Ivan paused on his way to the door, “And yes, we do know your real name, but soon that’ll be just between you and I. The rest of the world will forget you and the universe will see you as a star that fizzled out of existence,” Ivan paused to let Bill retort but when none came he smirked and opened the door, “Pleasant dreams.”

It was just Dipper and Bill in the room now and it was eerily quiet with Bill just laying there in silence.

Dipper had been watching in horror as he learned everything he ever wished to learn about Bill’s once mysterious origins.

And he still had questions.

He felt terrbile…no person should have had to endure what Bill just did. He slowly walked over to the edge of the gurney and stopped at the front where Bill’s head was facing the ceiling, his eyes were still closed.

Dipper placed his hands on either side of Bill’s head, _‘What…what does all this mean…?’_

Bill’s eyes opened and Dipper froze in fear as that yellow-eyed gaze seemed to stare through his soul, his voice sounded like he was speaking through a fan again, “It means you’re about to wake up, Pine Tree.”

Dipper’s vision began shaking again and he scaled back from the table as visions flashed in rapid succession.

_He was looking at himself in the elevator... ‘Really? Your last name is Pines…’_

_The jack and queen._

_Staring into the portal watching two silhouettes enter cautiously._

_A bright flash._

_Everyone holding onto lifelines._

_A golden orb with an hourglass hovering in a man’s hands._

_The portal shutting down. The room shaking._

_Dipper screaming…_

_His hands covered in blood._

_The room collapsing…_

* * *

Dipper gasped as he woke up in his dorm in a cold sweat and breathing heavily. He looked in all directions as he shakily stood up, nearly running into his desk. _‘It couldn’t have been real…no, it wasn’t real…’_

He felt something in his hand and he looked down and saw that he was holding a pen again. He checked his arm…

_I’m sorry. I warned you. Don’t forget about our deal. -Bill_

Dipper stood in a state of shock that eventually turned into shaking. He struggled not to let a sob release and he angrily threw the pen against the wall as he buried his face in his hands, collapsed to the floor, and cried.

It was real.

It was _all_ real.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Womp womp.
> 
> Next chapter will be up on Friday as normal.
> 
> Got questions? Check my tumblr~ (amoresognare.tumblr.com)


	13. Lockdown

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Everything changes on the day of the portal's activation.

Dipper was still sitting against the wall in a quiet daze when a gentle knock at his door caught his attention. He groaned and rubbed his face, “Who is it?”

“It’s me...Uncle Ford.” 

That was a shock. Dipper’s uncle had been avoiding everyone the past few days since they had been underground. Dipper wasn’t sure why but he was a little too intimidated to ask since his uncle seemed to be snappish when asked even the simplest of questions. Dipper stood up and stretched as he made his way to the door. He opened it slowly. 

Ford looked like he had seen better and more relaxed days. He cracked a tired smile at Dipper, “Evening, Dipper. Um…if it’s alright…I’d like to talk with you about tomorrow…” Ford paused, as he seemed to notice Dipper’s puffy eyes, “Oh…is everything alright?” 

Dipper squinted before he realized he was completely obvious, “Oh, yeah” he rubbed at his eyes, “…just had a bad dream is all…”

Ford regarded him suspiciously, “What kind of bad dream?”

Dipper shrugged carelessly, trying to avoid the topic, “Just…nervous about the portal is all…nothing serious,” Dipper moved to open the door a bit wider, “Come in.”

Ford took the hint seemingly unaffected but his eyes betrayed his passive demeanor, “Well,” he walked in, “First I want to apologize for not being as social with you since we’ve been down here…this project has been a lot tougher to work on considering what happened ten years ago…that and I’m worried about everyone’s safety, especially yours.” 

Dipper nodded, he had heard all of this before and, truthfully, he was fine with it. He didn’t believe that his uncle would put him in any danger but he understood and accepted the danger of what they were doing. It came with the territory and Dipper honestly liked the jobs better with an edge of danger to them.

But this project had a darkness looming over it. As if a death sentence was imminent…Dipper felt it the last few days and after what Bill showed him earlier, it seemed more likely than not.

As fun as it sounded in the abstract, Dipper’s anxieties had kicked into overdrive.

Ford took a seat at Dipper’s small desk as Dipper went to lie back down on his bed. “Dipper, you had asked me if I had a third journal…” 

Dipper froze. Said journal was still under his bed, “Yeah…” 

Ford sighed, “Well…I told you I didn’t have a third journal because, honestly, I don’t _remember_ if I do.” He grabbed Dipper's blue pen and fiddled with it anxiously. “But you see, before I gave you my journals, I read them over to see if I had written anything about the project ten years ago…you know, to see if we could avoid any past mistakes…” 

Dipper sat up, “And?” 

“Well…as I continued reading, I suspected that I **must** have a third journal because there were traces and shadows of it littered throughout the second journal. The second one also ended as if it would continue. I figured I might have misplaced my notes but the more I tried to remember, the stranger it became. I know I wrote down what Bill had said when he came out of that portal…I _wrote_ it…but I never saw it again. Come to think of it, I never found my notes from that day ever again. So where did they go? What did I do with it…?” 

Dipper was about to scream. He had that journal under his bed. “Uncle Ford…” Dipper's breathing became heavy as he reached for his duffle, “I-”

**_No._ **

Dipper froze as he heard that familiar voice clear as day, _‘W-What…?’_

 **_He’s too far gone, Pine Tree. Just don’t._ ** ****

Dipper shook his head, _‘Bill…’_  

 ** _He won’t handle it well and tomorrow will go horribly wrong if you show him that journal. Keep it to yourself. Sometimes forgetting is better._**  

Dipper thought it over for a moment, remembering his seemingly prophetic vision of the floor collapsing, he slid the duffle back under the bed. He wasn’t sure if he wanted to risk it…but he still wasn’t sure if he should trust Bill completely…

Ford leaned his head to the side as he stared at Dipper, “What is it?”

Dipper shook his head and rubbed his hand over his face, “Nothing…I just…I was…I was just wondering why you seemed so off lately…” 

Ford leaned back, not convinced, “Dipper, are you sure you’re alright? You’re acting strange…” 

Dipper gave him a reassuring smile, “I’m fine, Uncle Ford, really,” he rubbed the back of his neck, he was sweating, “It’s really just the stress of the project is all, I’ll be better once…once we’re done.” 

Ford hummed, “Well…I can’t say I don’t understand what you’re going through,” he grinned, “I would much rather be working on something less complicated…still, I wonder all the time about the notes I lost. I asked Fiddleford and even he doesn’t even know what he did with his.” 

 _‘Because his memories were erased, too,’_ Dipper drew his knees up to his chest, “Blendin said the owner would be coming tomorrow to see the portal being activated?”

“Yes, he informed me that medics and more security personnel would be here as well, in the event something goes wrong.”

Dipper gulped. That was reassuring…and terrifying at the same time, “So…why is he coming down so soon? I thought that he wasn’t going to visit until the portal was stable.” 

Ford looked at the ceiling, “I’m not supposed to discuss this with anyone but, I trust you, Dipper, so I’ll tell you…” he leaned forward, “I figured out how to activate the portal to different dimensions…”

Dipper nearly paled, “Wait…you mean, like, using the same door to open to different places?” 

“Yes, when we were assembling the data from ten years ago along with our reports, I worked with Blendin and discovered that it was feasible to use the portal like a key to open different doors to different dimensions. A few nights ago, when everyone was dismissed, Blendin and I used the last of the fuel to see if my hypothesis was correct. It didn’t do much but we were able to open to at least two dimensions…”

Dipper squinted, “So…does this tell us what the point of this mission is…?”

Ford pursed his lips, “I think the owner is looking for _something_ that’s in one of those dimensions…I’m not sure what it is but it seems to be extremely valuable.”

Dipper scoffed, “Well I guess so if he’s willing to jump through dimensions to get it,” Dipper sighed, smiling slightly, “Sounds more like a treasure hunt than a science venture.” 

Ford smiled, “Science ventures are merely treasure hunts with more equations involved, Dipper,” he flicked Dipper’s forehead playfully, “You should know that by now.”

Dipper chuckled, more relaxed than he was a few minutes ago. Maybe it was being around family that made him feel better. He rubbed his arms and looked at Ford, “So you think we’ll be able to pull off the activation tomorrow?" 

“We have enough fuel to keep it running for at least a week, it’s plenty enough time for us to locate the object or at least the dimension it’s in.”

Dipper’s face fell, “So…you’re _definitely_ going into the portal then?”

Ford rubbed his eyes, “We’ll throw a dummy in with some transmitters and a camera to make sure it’s safe, but yes, that is the goal.”

Dipper hummed, “Well…it sounds tiring already,” he said as he laid back down, “Can’t wait." 

Ford looked at Dipper pensively for a moment before standing, “Um…Dipper, look, I know I wasn’t really around all that often when you and your sister were younger…hell, I was barely around for my own brothers…I know you could have benefited from someone who understood your passions and you might not have felt so lonely if I had taken the time away from work,” Ford looked away, “That’s my own fault…I was never good at connecting with people…even my own family,” there was a small pause and he looked back at Dipper, his eyes were glossed over, “But I want you to know if you need to talk about things that bother you, I’m here…and I want to be here for you, if you let me…I don’t want you to feel like you can’t talk to me…”

Dipper didn’t know what to say…he had never seen this side of his uncle before. He had always been so stoic. He never talked about his feelings and it was very rare that he even showed them.

Now, though, Dipper noticed the regret and desperation in his eyes. Dipper cracked a small smile, “Sure, Uncle Ford…thank you…um…” Wow, this was more awkward than it should have been. 

Thankfully Ford spared them both the emotional outburst and reached over to ruffle Dipper’s hair, “Get some sleep, Dip,” he sniffled a bit as he walked over to the door, “You know where to find me if you need me.”

Dipper nodded as he waved his uncle goodbye, “’Night…” he checked his watch. It was almost midnight. Which meant he had seven hours to sleep.

Dipper didn’t really want to sleep. Which made him think of something…

“Bill?” His gazed around the room. Silence. He tried again, “Bill?” Nothing. 

Dipper sighed as he curled up and closed his eyes.

* * *

 

**_BANG BANG BANG_ **

**“Piiiiiines!!!**

Dipper jumped to the loud sounds coming from his door and checked his watch. 9:00 AM.

Shit. He was late.

An hour late.

Gideon’s annoying voice pierced through the door, “Wake up, Pines! We were supposed to start this thing an hour ago!” More banging on the door.

“Alright, alright!” Dipper rolled out of bed and opened the door to a frustrated Gideon, “My alarm didn’t go off, give me a break.” Dipper was just a countdown away from decking this bastard…

Said bastard grumbled and they started a brisk walk back to the portal room, “We can’t afford anymore hold ups, Pines! And not that I care, but you left the owner waiting and I’m pretty sure that’s going to leave a nice impression on you.”

Dipper truthfully couldn’t find himself caring about it either, “Whatever,” he murmured as they rounded a few corners to the door leading down to the room.

As they entered, Dipper noticed there were a lot more people present than the last few times they attempted to start the portal. Among them was the owner, a few more security guards, including Ivan, and a few medics from the first floor.

Dipper tried not to think of the vision Bill had showed him. It was hard enough just being down here…

Near the portal, his Uncle Ford was staring into the center in deep thought. Dipper greeted everyone quickly and then walked over to his uncle, “Uncle Ford?”

Ford blinked and looked over to Dipper with a small smile, “Morning, Dipper,” his voice sounded tired, “Today is the big day..."

Dipper nodded and patted Ford’s shoulder in an assuring gesture, “Are you sure we’re ready for this?”

Ford laughed, “Not at all, but we’ll see what happens I guess.”

Dipper smiled and soon, the medics were dismissed to watch the scene unfold in a viewing room just outside the portal room and security personnel stood by near the exit, their life lines tethered to the wall. Dipper felt strange. Like this was all happening too quickly and it wasn’t quite real just yet…

Dipper made sure everyone’s lifeline was secured before securing his own, “Lifelines secure...ready to launch.” The words sounded strange to say.

Fiddleford nodded and began typing a string of codes on his laptop to initiate the machines, “All data reads are normal, systems clear. We’re ready.”

Ford took a heavy breath as he stared into the center, his hand gripping the lever tightly, “3…2…1…” he yanked the lever and the dual chambers lit up immediately as they powered on.

There was a whizzing sound as the chambers and the computer connected. It made a clashing sound and the center of the portal began to light up as the small gateway to their dimension expanded. Dipper was thankful for having his UV goggles. The portal wasn’t even completely running and it was already brighter than sunlight. The gravitational pull was minimal twenty feet from the caution line and everyone was holding their own weight on the floor.

Dipper watched as Ford pressed a few buttons on the lever and the star symbols lit up one by one. Once all were lit, the center became stable and calm.

Fiddleford was continuously reading out all changes in the data and when he reported everything was stable and at full capacity, it was just a waiting game to see if the gateway would fizzle out after a few minutes.

Once there was no change, Ford made his way to the large computer where he began to input location data. After Ford pressed each key he checked to see what the gateway was doing. Dipper followed his gaze and watched as the gateway’s colors changed after each key entry.

Those were the different dimensions, he figured. Dipper vaguely wondered if creatures in those dimensions could see the portal on their ends. How odd that must have been….

The owner’s voice came in over the microphone from the other room, “Hold it there, Dr. Pines.”

Dipper watched Ford pause and look in the direction of the viewing room where the owner was standing right in front of the window. The man stared into the portal for a long time until he slowly moved away and began to walk towards the exit leading down to where the team was.

Ford held his hand up as a warning when the man slowly opened the door, “Sir, you’ll have to put a lifeline on before you come any closer.”

Blendin, who had been standing near Dipper, immediately rushed to the owner with a spare lifeline, “Here you are, sir,” he said as helped the owner into it.

The owner looked at the portal and pointed, “It’s there, that’s the one.”

Ford shot a quick glance at Blendin, “Are you sure?”

The owner nodded, “Yes, how soon can you be ready to send a crew in to retrieve the object?”

Ford checked the data printouts for anything unusual, “We need to send a transmitter in first to make sure it’s not dangerous, we leave the dummy in for about 24 hours while the portal runs and when it comes back we can tell how safe the area is. After that, we can get a team inside.”

The owner shook his head, “No, you’ll have a team ready within an hour."

Ford flinched, “W-What?! No, absolutely not. It’s too dangerous!”

Blendin stammered as he tried to quell the blooming argument, “Now, now, gentlemen, I’m sure there’s a way we can work this out to where it’s safe for everyone…”

The owner grumbled, “I didn’t come all the way down to here just to wait another day for things to get done,” the man crossed his arms, “Why can’t a team be ready within the hour? This isn’t like last time…”

Ford gave a frustrated groan, “Because it’s too dangerous! We don’t know what kind of time zones this dimension has or what kinds of creatures inhabit it. One hour is not enough time to make a safe assessment. We also don’t know if the portal is going to be stable enough for the full 24 hours. Sending a team in for an indiscernible amount of time when we’re not sure how long the gateway will run is ridiculous and not a risk I want to take!”

Blendin made a small noise, “Well...we don’t have to worry about the portal being unstable or shutting down because we have a small backup plan that I have not disclosed as of yet…" 

Ford looked at Blendin, “What? What ‘back-up plan?’”

Blendin waved his hand, “It’s not important at the very moment,” he said quickly, “Let’s get the dummy ready and send it in. We can review the footage and make a determination on whether we’re going in or not once we have that. Does that sound reasonable?”

The owner nodded, “Yes...let’s do that.”

Ford growled under his breath and pulled Blendin aside as they made their way to the dummy, “I’ll remind you that that man may be the owner of this facility but he is _not_ a scientist,” Ford paused to adjust their lines, “If he puts our team in unnecessary danger, I’m walking.”

Blendin sighed and removed Ford’s hand, “I understand what you’re saying, Dr. Ford...but let’s think rationally, an hour is enough time to send the dummy in and get a good reading, as far as sending a crew in, we’ll cross that bridge when we get to it…”

They tied a rope around the dummy and secured it to a hitch that was attached to one of the chambers. Once they approached the caution line with the dummy, the stronger the gravitational pull was on them. Ford and Blendin were slightly elevated in the air as they inched the dummy closer to the gateway.

Dipper watched in awe as the dummy lost its mass and hovered into the gateway, disappearing behind the blue light.

Ford then adjusted his watch, “Okay, this is ridiculous, but we have one hour,” he and Blendin scaled back to the wall, “Then, we’ll see what we’ll see…”

* * *

 

_One hour later_

To everyone’s relief, the dummy came back a bit beat up but overall in pretty good shape. The transmitter had nothing to report and the footage from the camera demonstrated a quiet atmosphere with nigh a creature or soul in sight.

Dipper was surprised…and a little disappointed.

Until the owner, who was also viewing the footage, became extremely excited and energetic as he frantically pointed to something in the corner of the screen. Everyone gathered around and zoomed in on the item in question.

To Dipper, it looked like a triangle. The object was wedged in the dirt of the dimension and it was glowing a golden color…

Dipper recognized it as the other half of the hourglass that Bill had thrown into the portal in his vision... He gulped, _‘Why did he throw it back…’_ he thought, _‘Is the owner…what is he planning to do with it?’_

“That’s it! So we know it’s there!” The owner bounced excitedly.

Dipper looked over at Gideon who was smirking victoriously. Nothing felt right about this anymore. Dipper felt like he would start hyperventilating.

Blendin’s voice broke through the air, “So! Now that we know where the object is…Ford and I will get ready to go in and retrieve it. Let’s get our suits on!”

Ford gave Dipper a grave look, “Dipper, come here,” he gestured for Dipper to come over and once he was within ear shot he pulled Dipper closer, “You’ll be in charge of the lifelines...so I need you to do me a favor…if anything happens, if the portal becomes unstable or there’s any significant danger whatsoever, do not waste your time trying to get me out of there, just…get yourself to safety.”

Dipper took a shaky breath and tried to pretend this conversation wasn’t happening, “Don’t think like that, Uncle Ford…there’ll be plenty enough time to get you out of there if something goes wrong…I won’t let that happen…”

Blendin cut in and snapped his fingers, “Ah! Yes, our back-up plan. Ivan, bring him in!”

Ivan nodded and signaled to someone in the viewing room.

Dipper looked over at the sound of a door opening and his eyes widened in shock as two security guards entered.

Gripped between them was Bill.

And he looked just like he did in Dipper’s dream the night before. Except he was completely bound in a straight jacket and what looked like a muzzle around his face…he looked terrifying and uncomfortable. Dipper noticed Bill’s eyes were closed as if he were sleeping.

Blendin regarded Ivan with concern after he looked Bill over, “What’s with the psych garb, Ivan? He put up a fight?”

Ivan shrugged one shoulder, “I didn’t want to take any chances.”

Ford looked at Ivan questionably before turning his attention to Blendin, “What is _he_ doing here…?”

Blendin smiled and walked over to Bill, “Well, Dr. Ford, it’s all thanks to your nephew that we were even able to discover this,” he gestured to Bill, “Since his accident in the portal ten years ago, we’ve been running some tests and experiments to see what kind of energy he absorbed,” Blendin paused and glared down at Bill, “He’s also the reason the portal was a complete **failure** the first time around since he **broke** the object we’d been looking for and **threw** **it back into the portal** …”

Blendin stopped himself when he realized he was deviating and cleared his throat “Anyway! As it turns out, he actually absorbed quite a bit of that energy he was exposed to…it was interesting because the energy seemed to be sort of…independent…as your nephew so eloquently put it in his reports…so our ‘Bill Cipher’ here is basically a container for this raw energy. Now, we can get him to _use_ that energy to make sure the portal doesn’t go haywire.”

Dipper froze. The energy samples they had sent to him…had come _from_ Bill. The sample that detonated in his office had come from Bill. All of it…it was all leading to this.

Bill _was_ going to be used to stabilize the portal.

Ford was silent for a beat before he cleared his throat, “S-So…for the past ten years, you’ve been experimenting on him? He was never receiving medical care?”

Blendin looked confused, “Um, I’m sorry?”

Ford was angry, “You’ve been **experimenting on him for ten years**!”

Blendin’s gaze shifted curiously, “Well…of course, I mean, he survived a pretty cataclysmic event going into that portal with no protective equipment. Not only that but look at him! He hasn’t aged a day since then! Of course we had to observe him for anything strange! And boy did we discover some things! You of all people should understand, Dr. Ford.”

Ford was red in the face, “He’s still a _person_ , Blendin! I mean, just look at him, he wasn’t this messed up ten years ago!”

Blendin shook his head, “This is neither here nor there, gentlemen,” he said as he patted Bill’s head, “You act as if you didn’t run experiments on colleagues that were overexposed to your own projects. I suggest we get back to work and get ready to retrieve that object. Bill is fine…in a manner of speaking.”

Ford slammed his fist on the table, making Fiddleford jump, “We’re not doing **anything** until you tell us what this is all about.”

A silence fell over the room as Blendin looked over at the owner who slowly looked as if he were losing his cool. Blendin fixed Ford with a hard stare, “Dr. Ford,” he said, “It’s simple, we want to retrieve the object…after that, well, we’ll just have to figure that one out…”

Ford shook his head, “No...I’m not buying it. There’s a reason you want this so badly…and I want to know what it does!”

Suddenly, the portal began to shake and the gravitational pull expanded as everyone but Bill was pulled up in the air momentarily before coming back down with a variety of confused gasps and screams.

The owner growled as he lost his patience, “This is nonsense! We have to get in there before we lose our chance! I won’t allow another failure! Either you both go in or I’ll have security force you in!”

Ford didn’t flinch at the threat but he seemed to take it in consideration as he looked between the portal and Blendin, “I’ll go with you,” he directed to Blendin, “But when we come out of there, I want answers.”

Blendin smirked, “Oh, you’ll get one." They headed to put their suits on. Blendin looked at Ivan and gestured to Bill, “Get him awake and ready, and get those garments off him…he won’t do anything if he’s limited like that…

Ivan nodded and walked over to Bill, grabbing his hand and lifting his head, “Wake up, Cipher,” he flicked Bill’s forehead, “Your time has come.”

Bill opened his eyes slowly and stared around the room.

Dipper noted how Bill didn’t even react to how bright the room was. Everyone else was wearing safety goggles, even in the viewing room. In here, Bill didn’t seem affected by anything.

Ivan instructed the men to release Bill from the straight jacket and removed the muzzle himself, “You know what you’re to do, correct?” He spoke quietly.

Bill gave a short nod, rolled out his shoulders, and cracked out his neck but otherwise he said nothing. He walked over to the chambers of the portal and closed his eyes. When he opened them again, they were a bright blue color. He made his way towards the portal and didn’t even look at Dipper as he walked past him. He approached the caution line and faced the center, eventually sitting down and crossing his legs, a look of concentration on his face.

The gravitational pull had no effect on him at all.

The portal, once flickering, now stabilized completely.

Dipper shook his head in disbelief. As always, he had so many questions.

Ford and Blendin came out in their protective suits that looked similar to space suits. Dipper saw a look of guilt pass over Ford’s face as he hesitated at the sight of Bill facing the center of the portal so closely. When Bill didn’t regard him in the slightest, Ford headed towards his lifeline and made sure his and Blendin’s were secure.

Dipper offered Ford a small smile and a thumbs up as Ford and Blendin moved in front of Bill. Dipper felt an odd moment of déjà vu as he watched the two men enter the portal. He let out a shaky breath and checked the lifelines. He’d seen this before…

A high-pitched noise filled Dipper’s ears and he flinched. Once it passed, his uncle and Blendin were nowhere in sight.

The room was silent in anticipation for what would happen next. Fiddleford was torn between looking at the portal and the string of data that was streaming on his laptop. Gideon and Bud were watching the portal intently.

Dipper started chewing on the collars of his lab coat out of anxiety.

It was an incredibly restless feeling to wait.

Five minutes later, the lifelines were still secure and hadn’t moved at all. Dipper had evolved from chewing his coat collars to tapping his foot nervously. He was starting to feel an anxious coiling in his gut when he saw the gateway shift slightly.

The lifelines tugged a bit and soon, Blendin and Ford came through the portal and made their way to the back.

Dipper smiled and couldn’t help the relieved laugh that escaped him, “Yes! You made it!”

Ford looked over at Dipper and a wide, relieved grin spread over his face, “It was incredible!” his voice sounded robotic coming through the helmet, “Dipper, you should see it in there, the atmosphere is just amazing…the sky…” Ford took deep breaths as he righted himself, “It’s beautiful…”

Dipper smiled and helped pull his uncle to where the gravity was center mass, “Did you get the thing?”

Blendin laughed, “We sure did,” he held up a jar, contained inside, the other piece to the hourglass, “T.B.,” Blendin said to the owner, “Here it is.”

The owner, T.B., smiled and walked towards Blendin, “Perfect…” he removed the other half of the hourglass from his coat pocket, “Put them together…” He instructed as he opened the glass orb.

Blendin carefully removed the piece from the jar with some tweezers and once the pieces were united, they glowed a very bright gold and the hourglass hovered in the center of the orb.

T.B. smiled, “Yes…”

Dipper, who was watching in awe and ready to study it, suddenly felt a weight drop in his stomach, “So…what is that?”

T.B. smiled, “You have no idea how much power this thing yields, boy,” he held the now completed hourglass in front of him, “We could run the world with this…no rules, no silly government, just our will from here on out! Can you imagine the possibilities?!”

Dipper immediately looked at Bill, who was still sitting in the center of the portal…was that what this was about? Was Bill trying to gain his freedom by helping the owner… _rule the world?_

What the hell?!

Dipper saw what that future entailed when he gazed into Bill’s visions.

Burning cities and destroyed towns didn’t fit into his future aspirations.

“No way,” Dipper couldn't believe this was real, “There’s no way…”

Gideon let out a triumphant yelp, “Yes! And I’m gonna be president!” He pointed at T.B., “We had a deal!”

Dipper looked over at Gideon, “You were in on this the whole time?!”

Gideon sneered, “Who do you think funded this project, Pines?” Gideon chuckled, “Granted, we had to make a little bargain with Preston Northwest who pretty much runs the town of Gravity Falls. He’ll keep his town safe, be our hub of operations, and then we move onto bigger, better things like global domination!”

Dipper couldn’t believe what he was hearing. This sounded like something straight out of the cartoons he and Mabel used to watch as kids. He looked at Ford who was just as confused, “This can’t be real…Uncle Ford-”

**_Pine Tree…hang on to something._ **

_‘What?’_ Dipper’s gaze quickly flitted to Bill who was still sitting calmly as if nothing around was affecting him.

Dipepr looked back at T.B. and gripped his lifeline tightly while gesturing to Ford to do the same.

T.B. held the orb, “Oh, it’s very real. Once the government sees what this can do they’ll be begging me for it…and then-“

**BOOM**

The room violently shook as the portal flashed brightly and the chambers began whizzing faster and faster. The gravitational pull extended and everyone, including Bill, went up in the air.

“No!” T.B. cried as the orb was pulled from his hands and he reached out to catch it. In the process, he grabbed it a little too hard and the orb shattered, causing him to grab the hourglass with his bare hands. 

“Gah!” Dipper yelped as the force of the gravitational pull launched him in the air, “Uncle Ford!” He made sure his lifeline was completely secure before checking his uncle’s. 

“Dipper! Grab my arm!” Ford hastily grabbed both of their lines and linked his and Dipper’s arms together as they reached as far away from the portal as possible. “What happened?! What’s going on?!” Ford reached out and grabbed Fiddleford by the leg as the man was hovering in the air frantically trying to catch his laptop. 

Gideon yelled as he scrambled to find purchase on the piping of the ceiling, “What is this?!" 

Bill, meanwhile, was floating in the middle of the room. A look of determined focus was on his face and his eyes were glowing a bright blue.

T.B. screamed in Bill’s direction, “What are you doing, you idiot?! You’re supposed to-“ He stopped abruptly as he looked down at his hands in alarm. They were still holding the hourglass…but they were smaller…

Dipper watched, fascinated as T.B. looked as if he were…getting younger? “W-What…” Dipper gaped as he T.B.’s height was shrinking and his face was becoming more youthful. Still, he held onto that hourglass with a death grip.

Which ended up being his drawback since his lifeline, now that his form was smaller, slipped off of him and he gravitated quickly towards the center of the portal. A look of realization crossed his now childlike face and he screamed, still getting younger and younger as the portal completely consumed him. Without a lifeline, he was lost forever in that dimension…and he wasn’t even wearing a protective suit.

“T.B.!” Blendin, who had been desperately attempting to save T.B., was halfway into the portal when his lifeline started to loosen from the force of the gravitational pull.

“Oh no!” Ford grabbed Blendin’s line and attempted to pull him back, “You’re not getting away that easy!” The room began to quake with more force as the portal’s whizzing sounds sped up in higher frequency.

The quake of the room caused Ford to dislodge his grip from Dipper and he flew towards the center of the portal with Blendin. Blendin’s lifeline snapped from its hitch and he was launched into the portal quickly.

He didn’t even have time to scream.

The inertia of Blendin’s line snapping and the weight going forward was enough for Ford to fly in the portal headfirst as well. Ford’s face twisted into one of terror and he looked back at Dipper desperately before he went out of view and into the portal.

“No!” Dipper shouted as he grabbed Ford’s lifeline with one hand, holding onto the wall’s piping with the other to keep him rooted. Dipper had a firm grip on the lifeline as he pulled on it but it was difficult to keep himself situated to the wall at the same time. Every yank he made on the line risked him slipping and losing his uncle. He looked down at Bill, _‘Can’t you do something?! Please?! I have to save him!’_

Bill didn’t respond and neither did he move.

After a few moments, Bill’s eyes faded to their normal color and the portal’s light faded until it was gone. Bill hovered in the air for a few seconds before his eyes closed and he fell to the floor. The room shook once more as the portal’s equipment fell to the floor in pieces and bits of rock came loose and fell to the ground along with it.

The gravitational pull ceased and there were short gasps as everyone who wasn’t rooted to the floor came falling down.

Dipper fell to the ground with a hard thud and once he came to, he hastily began pulling Ford’s lifeline from the rubble.

The line came back severed.

Dipper stared at the end of the line and pulled what was left of it towards him, “No…no…” Dipper ran toward the pile of rocks where the gateway once was and shoved large pieces aside, “No…please no!”

In a few minutes, Dipper was a sobbing mess. The closer he got to the ground and _where his uncle should have been,_ the more hopeless he became. When he was in the center of a pile of rubble with no sign of his uncle, he sat back on his knees hopelessly, looking around for a few moments before it sunk it and he screamed, folding over and burying his face in his hands. 

Ford was gone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> NOTE: Chapter 14 and the entire rest of the fic is still in the process of being beta'd so I'm going to try and keep to a weekly update schedule as much as possible. I repeat, this fic is FINISHED.
> 
> In the meantime, there will be some LOB supplements (and some unrelated Billford) that I'll be uploading alongside LOB in the next few weeks. 
> 
> Also, if you guys have any questions or comments you can find me on tumblr at amoresognare.tumblr.com (it's basically an invitation to bother me :D )
> 
> See you all next week.
> 
> Pps: comments are super appreciated and it really lets me know how you enjoy/don't enjoy the fic!


	14. Escape

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dipper and Bill make an attempt to escape the facility before it's too late...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning: Physical trauma occurs in this chapter.

Dipper took off his gloves and goggles as he stared lifelessly at the pieces of rubble in front of him, silently hoping that his uncle was just trapped somewhere beneath the mess. Dipper knew the truth.

His uncle was gone. And with the portal as wrecked as it was, getting him back was hopeless…

Dipper was still overcoming the waves of shock that he hardly noticed the sounds of Gideon yelling…yelling at Bill.

“You did this, you useless, crazy monster!” Bud, still coming to grips with what happened earlier, was holding Gideon back and trying to lead them to the exit.

Dipper turned and saw Bill sitting on the ground staring in Dipper’s direction. Their eyes met and Dipper saw a look on Bill’s face that reminded him of when Bill was taken away by security the second time they met.

The look of desperation. Was…was Bill crying…?

Dipper shook his head and turned away. He knew Bill caused the portal to fail.

But did Bill _mean_ for all of this happen? Why would he let his uncle become trapped in another dimension?! It was too much for Dipper to process so he stood up and climbed over the rubble.

He walked past Bill without looking at him and approached the lever. He grabbed it, yanked it back and forth as he stared at the entrance of the partially dismantled portal, “Dammit, work!” Deep down, Dipper knew it was a useless endeavor but he had to try.

Nothing happened.

Frustrated, Dipper ran over to Fiddleford who was frantically trying to fix his laptop with shaking hands, “Dr. F?”

Fiddleford looked up with tears in his eyes, “There’s no signal anymore…not even from what little trace of the dimension we had before we activated the portal…it’s gone…he’s gone…Dipper, I’m so sorry…I….” Fiddleford covered his face as he collapsed into sobs.

Dipper took a deep breath, he wasn’t going to break down again, he turned his attention to Bill and walked over to him, grabbing his shoulder roughly, “What did you do?!” He had that feeling of déjà vu again, “Bill?!”

Before Bill could respond, Ivan shoved Dipper aside and pulled Bill up by the arm, “Answer! Now” he shook Bill harshly.

Bill glared before a smirk crossed his face, “Well, it looks like you just lost your job security…” he chuckled, “And your paycheck.”

Ivan threw Bill back, “The hell I did!” He opened his coat pocket and retrieved the gun Dipper had seen in Bill’s visions, “I hope you enjoyed your time off the first floor, because it’s the last time you’re leaving it."

Bill quirked an eyebrow, following Ivan’s gaze as the man walked over to Dipper, “Is that a dare or a double dare?”

Ivan adjusted the dials on the gun and stopped in front of Dipper, “I’ll make sure no one remembers you ever again, Cipher.”

Dipper’s eyes narrowed as he realized what was to happen. Ivan was going to erase his memories…“No!” He felt adrenaline surge through his veins as he angrily rushed toward the other man, knocking him down to the ground and struggling to obtain the gun from his hands.

Dipper felt like he was watching himself as he wrestled with Ivan on the ground. He had no idea where this was coming from but he was suddenly thankful for the self-defense lessons he learned from his Grunkle Stan.

Dipper applied his lessons proudly…and successfully as Ivan was now partially knocked out. When Dipper had the peace of mind to reset, he found that he was straddling the man’s midsection and he was holding the gun in front of him.

Dipper used the moment to observe the dials and without hesitation, he adjusted the settings to twenty years back and pointed the gun to Ivan’s head.

 _‘Am I doing this…?’_ Dipper thought as he steadied his finger on the trigger…He knew he was about to erase this man’s memory but _where was this coming from?_ The entire room felt frozen in time as Dipper stared at Ivan’s face, _‘Pull the trigger, Dipper…’_

**_Pull the trigger._ **

Ivan’s eyes fluttered open and Dipper lost all his hesitation and pulled the trigger to the gun, a bright light flashing in Ivan’s eyes.

Twenty years worth of memories took a lot of energy from the gun as it slowly fizzled out…Ivan looked around in a dazed confusion before his eyes rolled in the back of his head as he collapsed from exhaustion. Dipper stood up shakily and threw the gun away, realizing what he had done. 

Then the room started shaking again.

Fiddleford closed his laptop and ran over to the small red box near the entrance, “This floor is highly unstable! We need to move out now!” He flipped the box open and pushed the button inside. The lights switched off into emergency mode, flooding the room in bright red lights as an alarm sounded off. The building went into evacuation mode.

Gideon seethed, “No! We can’t abandon the mission now!” Gideon ran over to Dipper and grabbed the front of his coat, “Get that monster to start the portal again! I’m not leaving here empty handed!”

Bud walked past the two and hoisted Ivan over his shoulder, “Son, now’s not the time, let’s move along now, we’ll talk about this mishap when we get to safety!” Bud eagerly rushed toward the exit.

Gideon snarled and gripped Dipper’s coat tightly, “Make him start the portal again now!”

Dipper, now beyond frustrated, shoved Gideon away, “There’s no point! This whole floor is going to come down on us anyway! We need to get out of here.” Dipper rushed away from Gideon and called for Bill who was now standing by the rubble where the gateway was. Dipper walked over and grabbed his shoulder, “We’ve gotta go, Bill, come on.”

Bill didn’t move at first and Dipper was about to shake some sense into him until he turned around, “I need you to hold up your end of the deal, Pine Tree…”

Dipper sighed, _‘Seriously…now?!’_ Dipper shook his head, “Bill…now’s not the time,” he grabbed Bill’s arm much to Bill’s displeasure and dragged him towards the exit.

Bill resisted, “You don’t understand…”

Dipper ignored him. As they passed the machine connected to the portal, Dipper felt an ache in his chest as he saw his uncle’s glasses sitting on the desk where he had changed into his suit from earlier. Dipper quickly grabbed them and pocketed them, sniffling a bit before turning his attention back to Bill, “I can get you a knife when we get back up to the first floor…”

Bill growled and stopped walking, pulling Dipper back, “No, I need it now…we have to go back to your room…don’t you want to get your uncle’s journal? Especially now that he’s _gone_?”

Dipper’s eyed narrowed angrily, “What is it with you?!” his voice reverberated off the walls, “I’ve lost everything, Bill! My job, my uncle! I have no idea what’s going on and this floor is about to cave in on us any second and you’re worried about a stupid knife?!”

He had just watched his uncle and two other people get trapped into another dimension and he didn’t even know if they were alive or dead. He also wrestled with a security guard and erased most of the man’s life away.

Now he was dealing with the main source of all his stress and all he was giving Dipper trouble over a knife…

Bill stared at Dipper furiously, “You have **not** lost everything…”

Gideon’s laugh echoed through the room. Dipper wondered why the bastard was still here, “Pines might be able to get out of here, Cipher, but you won’t,” he said as he held up a remote control, “Dipper, do you remember at orientation when they discussed the security breaches? Since the wall’s been damaged, we’re about to see how it works on experiments with that handy dandy little explosive tracking device…” Gideon then pressed a red button on the control and spoke into the speaker when prompted, “’Bill Cipher, search and destroy.’”

Bill’s eyes widened and he gripped Dipper’s wrist and ran towards the exit, “You can argue with me later but we have to get it now!” Bill then took off running with Dipper in tow.

When Dipper made the connection, he quickened his pace, “No…” Bill had a tracking device implanted? But where?

They rounded a few corners and Dipper stopped them both as they passed his dorm, “Wait, wait! Here, it’s here!” Dipper rushed in and grabbed his duffle from under his bed, tossing his clothes aside and searching for his knife.

Bill let out a pained noise, holding his head as he fell to his knees, “Hurry!”

Dipper frantically turned over his duffle bag and shook it, emptying the rest of the contents. He smiled when his knife fell to the floor in a light clanking sound. He picked it up and held it in front of Bill, “Here!”

Bill grabbed it quickly and released the blade, he took a deep breath as he looked at Dipper, “Are you squeamish?” He was breathing heavily.

Dipper shook his head, “Not really…”

Bill held the pointed end of the knife to his right eye, “Good,” after a moment, he plunged the blade forward.

* * *

Dipper was now squeamish.

He was covering his ears and facing away as Bill cut the tracking device out of his right eye. It was hard to ignore Bill’s pained sounds so Dipper started humming under his breath.

The room was still shaking and Dipper realized that the floor would cave in soon. He hoped the higher floors would hold well enough for them to get out in time.

He felt Bill clumsily grasp at his shoulder. Dipper turned slowly saw his now bloodied knife at his feet. Bill’s hands and face were covered in blood. Dipper gasped when Bill fell against him, his head resting on Dipper’s shoulder. Careful not to focus on Bill’s bloodied face, Dipper adjusted his arm as he wrapped it around Bill’s back to hoist him up.

On the ground, he noticed what was left of Bill’s eye disintegrating into black dust on the floor.

Dipper quickly grabbed the journal off of his desk and assisted Bill in walking quickly to the stairwell, talking to him constantly to keep him awake. “We’ll get you to a medic once we get up there, okay, Bill?” The floor was shaking violently now.

Bill grunted as he awkwardly put one foot in front of the other, laughing softly, “My face hurts…” He kept a tight grip on Dipper’s shirt.

Dipper shook his head as they climbed up the stairs. The sounds of the floor giving way beneath him were loud and echoing. Dipper could almost hear the clanking sounds of metal falling with the dirt. He felt tears well up in his eyes at the thought of his uncle still being trapped down there.

Bill tightened his grip on Dipper’s shoulder, “Focus…”

Dipper didn’t realize how fast he was walking when he rounded the corner and saw the big sign that read ‘3rd Floor.’ _‘Only a few more…’_ he thought as they continued. The crashing sounds of falling rock subsided the higher they ascended.

Dipper wondered how many floors they had lost below.

He also wondered how Bill was doing surprisingly well for climbing eight flights of stairs after losing so much blood. Was Bill even human?

They reached the security level on the first floor. It was eerily quiet with no one around to check people through. Dipper figured everyone must have gotten out safely. The alarms were still going off throughout the building.

Once Dipper and Bill made it above ground, Dipper noticed how dark it was outside. He looked down briefly to check his watch, 3:00 AM.

That meant most of the building was empty…Dipper looked out the doors and saw everyone, including Gideon, kneeling on the grass outside. They made it out safe.

Dipper, now exhausted as hell, still managed to smile, “We made it,” he quickened his pace as he carried Bill over to the exit door and pushed it open to the sounds of helicopters flying overhead and search lights rotating on the grass.

There were also sounds of police sirens getting louder in the distance as the helicopters continued to circle overhead, “Do not move, stay where you are,” a voice said over a microphone up in the air, “Do not run, get on your knees and put your hands above your heads.”

Great. The Feds.

Bill slowly peeled away from Dipper, “I have to go…” he mumbled to him.

Dipper pulled him back, “No! You need a doctor, Bill, you can’t just leave!”

Bill smiled and Dipper flinched at how creepy it looked. Bill held his hand to his face, covering his empty eye socket, “I’ll be fine.” He moved to pull away when he paused and looked down.

Dipper had tightened his grip on Bill’s wrist and his eyes were filling with tears again. He felt like he was losing again…he saw his uncle’s face before he went into the portal and the tears ran tracks down his cheeks, “You can’t leave now…” he said quietly, “Please stay…”

Bill sighed and reached over, placing his other hand around the back of Dipper’s neck. Their foreheads touched and Dipper flinched because he had never been _this_ close to Bill’s face before. It was a little unsettling.

Bill opened his eye and stared at Dipper, “I’ll find you,” he mumbled as he removed his hand from his face to put it in his pants pocket, “I’ll find you…” he repeated as he grabbed Dipper’s hand and squeezed it.

Dipper watched as Bill pulled away from him and pried his hand away. Dipper felt something in his hand but it didn’t completely register as important as he watched Bill run off in the direction of the woods.

Once Bill was out of sight, Dipper heard the commanding voice from the helicopter demanding he get down or risk resisting arrest. Dipper complied. When he looked back in the direction where Bill disappeared, he saw nothing. Dipper opened his hand as he got on his knees.

It was Bill’s coin. Dipper smiled hopelessly. Bill might have been right when he told Dipper he hadn’t lost everything. 

But Dipper also felt that Bill might have been wrong…  



	15. Aftermath

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dipper deals with the aftermath of the events that unfolded down at GF-Corp.

_Three months later_

The next few weeks were a blur to Dipper.

The U.S. Government shut down GF-Corp for unauthorized use of radioactive waste and the entire area was quarantined and determined uninhabitable for an indeterminate amount of time. Search parties were sent out to find stragglers that might have escaped and all specimens were sent to an undisclosed location.

Four floors were lost.

As for the employees of GF-Corp., apparently the Feds and Secret Service believed the only useful thing to be produced by the facility was the memory gun Ivan had used. Apparently after it’s creation, the Secret Service had acquired quite a bit of those weapons.

In the end, everyone but Dipper and the rest of the portal crew had their memories of GF-Corp. wiped from their subconscious. On the plus side, the former employees of GF-Corp. were given five years worth of salary and employment opportunities across the country.

Dipper and his crew were due to face the High Court for their participation in the project.

The Court Magistrate presiding over their case admitted bluntly that he would have loved nothing more than to put everyone involved on the project into federal prison for nearly destroying the nearby towns and endangering the lives of citizens.

However, since the government had knowledge that this project was happening and agreed to monitor it, they realized that they couldn’t throw Dipper and his team into prison without cracking a few of their own eggs. So they offered the crew a hefty amount of what Dipper’s Grunkle Stan referred to as “hush money.”

The only catch in accepting said money is that they couldn’t talk about the incident or GF-Corp ever again.

Dipper had asked why they didn’t erase their memories to which the Magistrate replied, “So you can live with what you’ve done.”

Dipper felt the heaviness of it but he thought that to be the cruelest thing about the whole endeavor.

Still, $2 billion dollars was definitely enough to live off of for the rest of his life.

But Dipper still felt empty…and he never slept well after that. He considered therapy but he could never bring himself to go.

He tried to talk to Fiddleford but the man had completely shut him out. A month had passed and the last Dipper heard, Fiddleford had abandoned his home and moved somewhere up north near the Canadian border.

Gideon and his father attended the hearing but said nothing as the settlement was announced. Dipper expected to hear Gideon persuade the Magistrate into letting them reopen the facility but he was surprisingly quiet. When the hearing was over, Gideon and his father left quickly and Dipper never saw them again.

Not that he really cared.

Dipper still wanted know what happened to Bill…when he did sleep he didn’t dream and when he did dream it was a recurring nightmare of watching his Uncle Ford disappear into the portal. Dipper cried nearly every night for a month until he stopped going to sleep altogether.

One night, around three in the morning, Dipper was walking in the streets of Gravity Falls. The town was quiet save for the music coming from a somewhat packed bar full of its regulars.

Dipper walked in, ordered and consumed enough liquor to make him completely inebriated to the point he forgot where he was. When the bar closed up for the night, the manager walked him out and shut the door behind him. Dipper looked around for his next spot when he noticed a payphone 

Come to think of it, he hadn’t talked to Mabel since she called him twenty times about what the newspapers were calling a ‘major earthquake: epicenter at science facility in Gravity Falls.’

He needed to hear her voice. Dipper drunkenly made his way over to the phone and fished a few quarters from his pockets not realizing he had dropped some spare change. He had to concentrate in order to slip the coins into the slot. He haphazardly dialed Mabel’s number.

After a few rings, she answered tiredly, “Hello…?”

Dipper felt like he hadn’t used his voice in years. His composure broke, “M-Mabel…” he felt the flood of pent up emotion constricting in his throat, “Um…”

There was a muffled sound as Mabel adjusted to being awakened, “Dipper?” There was a pause, “Oh my gosh, Dipper, it’s almost four in the morning, what is wrong?!”

Dipper couldn’t speak, every noise he made wanted to be a sob and he couldn’t…he couldn’t keep breaking down like this, dammit! “I…” he took a deep breath through his nose as he leaned against the booth, “Something…dammit…” He thought that drinking would help him forget…instead it was making him emotional.

Mabel sounded worried and Dipper could hear her shuffling on the other end, “Dipper, listen, I’m packing my things right now and I’ll be there in a few hours, please, just tell me you’re alright!”

Dipper nodded, “I’m fine…” he croaked out, “It’s just…” he let out a broken sob, “Mabel I need you…” Dipper completely tuned everything out as he pulled back with a silent sob and placed the phone back on the receiver before Mabel could respond.

Then he collapsed in the phone booth and cried. He wanted home. He wanted to be a kid again. He wanted comfort. Instead, he was shoving his face into a filthy booth wishing for a way to turn back time.

At some point, someone had hoisted him up from the ground murmuring that they would get him home. Dipper shook his head, “No…just leave me alone…”

“Just tell me where to go,” the person said, “You shouldn’t be out in the state you’re in.”

Dipper looked around and saw his apartment complex in the distance, “There,” he pointed, “Just take me there.”

They started walking. It was only a few blocks but when Dipper had stopped in the phone booth earlier, the crash of his drunken adrenaline made him nauseous and he leaned away from the stranger, running over to a nearby trashcan and began puking.

After a few minutes, Dipper’s retching subsided and he was just sobbing into the trashcan. The stranger who had been helping him walk hoisted him up once more and continued walking, “Hey…are you okay to keep walking?” They asked.

Dipper hiccupped, “I just want to go home…”

The person hummed, “Well, we’re almost to that building,” they said, “Want me to drop you off at the front?”

Dipper gestured to the elevators, “M’place is upstairs…sixth floor…”

“Right,” they said as they pressed the button for up, “Is there anyone in your apartment? Someone I should call? Where’s your cellphone?” They entered the elevator.

Dipper’s head was starting to clear but his vision was super blurry, “Dude…cool it with the questions…” he mumbled as the elevator doors opened, “618…” He said as he gestured to the left. They walked in silence and when Dipper saw his apartment he stopped and leaned against the frame, “Thanks…” he mumbled as he opened the door. 

“Are you sure you don’t want me to call someone?” They asked.

Dipper shook his head, “No, my sister will be here in a few hours, thanks,” Dipper walked inside.

“Well, you forgot this,” the person said as they grabbed Dipper’s wrist and put a few bits of change in his hand, “Take care of yourself.”

“Hey, what’s your name?” Dipper looked up and blinked when he saw no one there.

Dipper leaned out the doorway and looked in either direction but he saw no sign of the stranger who brought him home. He looked down at his hand and saw the spare change that had fallen out of his pocket earlier, among the various pennies, was Bill’s gold coin.

Dipper closed his door and stared at the coin, _‘Bill…?’_ Dipper clumsily made his way to the couch and collapsed. He fell asleep immediately.

The next morning, Mabel was pounding furiously on his apartment door.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes, I know this was super short but there were a lot of events in the chapter before it and there's a lot of stuff that happens in the next chapter that this just kind of needed to be a 'down time and chill' chapter.
> 
> Oh and by the way, I'm starting a newish Billford series! It's called Burn Out and the first installment, Swan Song, is already published. 
> 
> So if you like/love Billford you should totally give it a read and tell me what you think!
> 
> See you all soon!


	16. Recovery

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dipper spends some time with his sister and his uncle in an effort to put himself on the track to recovery.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My beta is extremely busy and I am super appreciative to her efforts in making sure these chapters are ready to roll!

“Alright, bro, come on,” Mabel said as she eased Dipper to sit up on the couch, “How are you feeling?” Dipper groaned in response and rubbed his forehead.

Mabel patted his back, “Do you feel well enough to grab a shower?” Dipper managed a nod. “Okay, I’m gonna fix you something to eat while you do that,” she said as she handed him some pain reliever and a glass of water, “Take this.” Before Dipper could retort she held up her hand, “Don’t worry, I figured you haven’t been grocery shopping so I did it for you.” 

Dipper felt a surge of relief that Mabel was here and he leaned forward and rested his head against her shoulder, “Thank you…” he mumbled with a small sniffle.

Mabel smiled and pulled him into a hug, “It’s okay, Dip,” she said, giving him a small pat on the back, “It’s gonna be okay.”

They stayed like that for a few moments before Mabel pulled away, muttering something about the food potentially spoiling. While she restocked Dipper’s kitchen, Dipper made his way to the shower.

While he was showering, he was retracing his memories of the night before. He remembered drinking (quite heavily) at the bar and calling Mabel from the payphone (he wondered why he didn’t just use his cellphone…)

What he didn’t remember was the person who helped him home. He couldn’t even remember the person’s voice well enough…the fact that they gave him his dropped change that consisted only of a few pennies and Bill’s gold coin made him wonder…

* * *

Dipper figured he should take showers more often. He felt ten times better from ten minutes ago. And he smelled better, too. When he entered his living room, his stomach growled at the smell of scrambled eggs and turkey bacon. “Mabel, that smells amazing,” he said as he walked into the kitchen, “Need any help?”

Mabel flipped a pancake shaped like a Christmas tree, “You don’t mind cleaning the dishes do you?” There was a smile in her voice.

Dipper chuckled, “Of course not,” he said as he looked at the large pile of dishes in his sink, “Though you could have used less dishes…I didn’t even realize I had all of these…”

Mabel laughed awkwardly as she set the pancake down on the other stack, “Yeah I kind of bought you those,” she said with a cheesy smile, “Happy Late Holidays, bro.” 

Dipper grinned, “Well, thanks, Mabel,” he said as he grabbed a dish. 

Mabel stopped him, “No, no!” she said and pointed to a plate with scrambled eggs, “Eat first, then clean,” she put two pancakes, two strips of turkey bacon, and a spoonful of eggs on his plate, “Syrup’s on the table, I’ll be there in a second.”

Dipper grabbed the plate she handed him and grabbed them both some utensils. He couldn’t remember the last time he had a breakfast like this. The only one he could think of was from when he was still working at GF-Corp and Bill had eaten the rest of his tray. He shuddered at the thought of that place and suddenly, the dark cloud that had been blocked out momentarily came back into focus. 

Dipper looked down at his plate and laughed when he noticed Mabel arranged the food in the shape of a smiley face, “Mabel…” he said as he picked a piece of turkey bacon with his fork, “I’m…I’m glad you’re here,” he tried not to get choked up. _‘Don’t cry, man, come on.’_

Mabel smiled softly as she set the last dish in the sink and sat at the table with him, “I’m glad, too,” she said as she sat down, “I’ll be here for as long as you need me.”

Dipper gave her an odd look, “What about your job?” 

Mabel shrugged, “I had two weeks of vacation that I haven’t used but I told them I had a family emergency and that I’d be working from here. I have all my stuff I just need to check in every day on Skype with my manager. They’re cool with it, Dipper, don’t worry.”

They sat in silence for a few moments as they finished their breakfast. They helped each other clean the dishes, Mabel washing as Dipper dried them off and picked them up. 

Once everything was put away and the kitchen was clean, Mabel leaned against the bar counter as Dipper sat on one of the stools, “So…” she started, looking at her hands, “Do you want to tell me what’s going on?”

Dipper didn’t even know where to start, “Well…” he hesitated, he was instructed that he couldn’t tell a soul of what happened at his job. At first he didn’t really care but he realized that he didn’t want to risk Mabel’s safety…so he shook his head, “There was an accident at work…the facility was shut down…indefinitely.”

Mabel nodded, “I know about the accident because I saw it in the news.” 

Dipper glanced at her curiously, “Wait…how did you get news from this town all the way down in San Francisco and…what exactly did you hear?”

Mabel rolled her eyes and shrugged as she rounded the counter to sit next to Dipper, “I subscribed to the app because you don’t know how to check in,” she said, “I figured a small town such as Gravity Falls would report on anything happening to anybody. Turns out I was right. That’s why I called you so much when I found out about the earthquake.”

Dipper stared at her, “Wow,” he replied, “That’s…very you, Mabel.”

Mabel hummed, “So what happened exactly?” 

Dipper cringed, “I…I’m not supposed to talk about it,” he said and he winced at Mabel’s glare, “I’m serious! Plus, it doesn’t really matter, all I can really say is that the facility is completely shut down but the government gave everyone a hefty salary in exchange for being out of a job, that and they want us to keep quiet. I don’t even know what happened…” He was sort of lying so that Mabel wouldn’t hound him for details, he really didn’t want to get to the next part…Dipper sighed and leaned forward, resting his head on his arms.

He flinched a little when he felt Mabel’s hand rest on his back, “Dipper, I know you’re keeping something from me…” she said softly, “I won’t bug you about it…but I need to know something…” She paused for a moment before sniffling and leaning her head on the counter to peek at Dipper’s face, “Is Uncle Ford…?” 

Dipper clenched his fist and shook his head as a sob escaped him, “He’s gone…" 

Mabel gasped as she sat up, “Oh no…” she stared into the distance for a few moments before tears welled in her eyes and she leaned her head on Dipper’s shoulder, “I’m so sorry…”

Dipper grabbed her hand and held it, “It happened so fast…before I knew what was happening,” Dipper was getting better at bouncing back from endless sobbing, “He was gone…we were evacuated out of the facility and brought to medics almost immediately.” 

Mabel lifted her head as Dipper lifted his from his arms, wiping at his eyes, “The news said there was a radiation leak…” 

Dipper never knew what the media was calling it but he figured it made enough sense, “Yeah…Ford…he was trapped underneath the rubble…”

Mabel wiped at her eyes, “Did you tell Grunkle Stan?” Dipper’s eyes widening gave her the answer, “Dipper…we have to tell him…it’s been three months…” 

Dipper groaned and pinched the bridge of his nose, “I know…” he sighed sadly, “I don’t even know…he lives near the facility…do you think we should drive out there.” 

Mabel shook her head, “Not now,” she said, “You’re in no condition to be delivering bad news to anyone. Just rest today and we’ll deal with Stan tomorrow, okay?” 

Dipper nodded, “If you say so…” he mumbled, “I just…Mabel it’s been difficult just dealing with all of this by myself, you know?” 

Mabel pulled Dipper into another hug, “Well, you’re not alone anymore, Dipper,” she said, “I’m here and I’m not going anywhere, okay?”

Dipper smiled, returning the hug, “Thank you, Mabel.”

Mabel kissed his cheek quickly, “Now go take a nap,” she said, “I have some scarves to knit. Maybe tonight we can order pizza and watch dumb movies.”

Dipper smiled as he stood up and made his way to his bedroom, “That sounds perfect.”

* * *

The next day, Mabel and Dipper drove out to their Grunkle Stan’s place. It was only about a fifteen-minute drive from the town but the drive felt so much longer to both of them. Dipper tapped his foot anxiously the whole way there and Mabel didn’t even try to calm him. She was feeling the same way.

They didn’t even know if Stan knew yet.

When they pulled up to the “Mystery Shack,” Dipper smiled at the sight. His uncle wasn’t giving up on his scam schemes anytime soon based off the cheesy look of the place. “I guess this is how he’s paying the mortgage on this place?”

Mabel laughed, “Yeah, it’s actually not bad, he tells really good stories to the tourists and he’s got good employees,” she replied, “He’s doing well.”

Dipper noticed a goat nearby, “When did he get a goat?”

“Oh, that’s Gompers,” she replied, “And Stan said he just showed up one day…never left, weird, right?”

Dipper chuckled, “Wow,” they walked up the steps and opened the door to the Shack.

Dipper froze when he recognized the man behind the counter, “Soos?!”

Soos looked up and smiled when he saw Mabel, “Oh hey, Mabel and strange person I’ve never met…”

Dipper was confused at first until he remembered that the government had wiped Soos’s memories of working at GF-Corp. Which meant he lost all memories of Dipper…Dipper frowned, “Oh, um, hi,” he extended his hand to Soos, “Sorry, I just heard a lot about you from Mabel, she’s my sister, I’m Dipper Pines.”

Soos shook Dipper’s hand, “Nice to meet you, Dipper,” he said, “Dude, have you been to the Shack at all? It’s amazing! I just started working here a few months ago and let me tell you, it’s the best job I’ve ever had!" 

Dipper smiled, “That’s great…” he said as Soos continued on about how amazing the job was and how great Stan treated him. Dipper started feeling sad, as Soos showed no signs of ever having worked with him, it was disheartening but at least he seemed happy here.

“Kids?” the gravelly voice of their uncle Stan registered in the room and Mabel ran over to give him a hug, “Hey! What brings you two out here? Wow, Dipper you look like hell.”

“Thanks, Grunkle Stan…”

Mabel pulled back and checked her watch, “Grunkle Stan, Dipper and I really need to talk to you about something important if you have, I don’t know, the rest of the day?”

Stan hummed and rubbed his chin, “Eh! I don’t think it’ll hurt,” he said as he looked at Soos, “Soos, tours are off for today but the gift shop stays open!”

“You got it, Mr. Pines,” Soos said as he saluted, “I will watch over it like a hawk…”

“Yeah, great,” Stan muttered as they went through the hallway that divided the Shack from the rest of the house, Dipper was amazed by all the knick knacks that Stan had decorated throughout the house. Some of them looked just like the creatures at GF-Corp…

Stan set his fez on the counter as he shrugged out of his suit, “So what’s going on, kids? You don’t visit as often as you used to,” he pointed at Dipper, “And you live nearby so I’ll hear no excuses from you, young man!” 

Dipper raised his hands defensively, “Sorry!”

Mabel sighed and waved her hands, “Grunkle Stan, this is important, and you may want to sit down…”

On that cue, the three of them pulled up chairs at the small dining table and Stan had a look on his face that was a fine line between annoyed and worried, “What’s going on, Mabel, is someone sick?”

Mabel shook her head, “No…it’s…” she took a deep breath, “It’s Uncle Ford…”

Stan sighed and shook his head, “Oh…I know, I know,” he pinched the bridge of his nose, “I got a call from one of his colleagues…I can’t remember the guy’s name…uh…something McGuckett…”

Dipper perked up, “Fiddleford?”

“Yeah! That’s it,” he said, “I thought it was a joke at first but it must have been the day after that big earthquake shook up the towns nearby that he called…I remember trying to call you,” he said as he pointed to Dipper, “But you never answered or called me back!” Stan glared at Dipper, “I’ll have you know if it wasn’t for your sister checking in with me I would have driven out there with a bat to knock some sense into you!”

Dipper didn’t even have the energy to argue, he knew he should have kept in touch with everyone. He didn’t even call his parents as often as he should have after everything happened. He shrugged his shoulders, “I know…I’m sorry, it’s just….it’s been difficult…”

Stan nodded and leaned back, rubbing at his eyes, “Well…we’re family,” he said, “We’re supposed to help each other, and you know that…”

Dipper nodded, “I know, I know…it’s just,” Dipper could feel himself about to cry, “I’m sorry…” He leaned forward and put his face in his hands.

Mabel reached over and touched his shoulder, “We weren’t sure if you were told, Grunkle Stan,” she said, “I only found out yesterday…”

Stan nodded morosely, “I knew…” he said. He looked back up at Dipper, “Dipper, I can understand why you didn’t reach out,” he said, “You’re a lot like me, you don’t want to ask anyone for help…and I get it…but don’t ever do that again, you understand?”

Dipper nodded and looked up, trying to give his uncle a small smile, “Thanks…”

Stan nodded and after a few beats of silence, he clapped his hands together, attempting to lighten the mood, “So! How’s about I give you kids a tour of the place? No charge!” He winked and elbowed Mabel gently, “Aww, come on it’s not that busy anyway!” 

Dipper looked at Mabel who smiled at him encouragingly, he returned the smile, “Sure, Grunkle Stan.”

It seemed strange that Grunkle Stan didn’t want to discuss his brother or what had happened to him…

* * *

“Grunkle Stan,” Dipper said as they walked back into the shack, “You have quite the imagination.”

Stan clapped Dipper on the back, “Well, it certainly keeps the mortgage paid!”

Mabel laughed, “I really liked the jack-a-lope,” she said, “That was adorable. In fact, I’m gonna make shirts for you to sell in the gift shop!”

Stan nodded, “Oh, that sounds great! We’ll sell ‘em fifty bucks apiece, no! Eighty bucks apiece!”

Mabel laughed, “I better get a cut of that!”

“Absolutely not.”

Dipper smiled as the two bickered, it was the first time he felt something close to normal in nearly a year.

As evening fell, Mabel stood up from where they had been watching TV, “Well, Grunkle Stan,” she said as she stretched, “Tomorrow is another day! How about we come here for dinner?”

Stan nodded from his chair, “Sounds good, sweetie,” he said, “You coming, too, Dip?”

Dipper nodded, “Where Mabel goes, I go,” he said, “It sounds like a great idea.”

As the twins made their way to the door, Stan had called Dipper back in for a moment. Dipper, thinking it slightly odd, went back in as Mabel waited in the car, “What’s going on Grunkle Stan?”

Stan looked like he was struggling with his words and he pulled Dipper into a tight hug, “I know what really happened, Dipper,” he said, “And I want you to know that it’s not your fault, okay? You have to understand that. It’s not your fault.”

Dipper, surprised at first but now close to crying, returned the hug and rested his face on Stan’s shoulder, “I’m trying…I’m trying…”

Stan nodded and patted Dipper’s back, “You know where I am if you need me, okay? And for what it’s worth,” he pulled away to look Dipper in the eyes, “I was so relieved when your sister told me you were okay…” he patted Dipper’s shoulder, “I may not understand why you and my brother were so obsessed with that weird science-y stuff but…I’m so proud of you, please know that, okay?”

Dipper bit his lip and nodded, “Thank you, Grunkle Stan,” he said as was pulled in for another hug.

His heart swelled with all the love and support he had been receiving from his family that he was kicking himself for not reaching out months ago…he didn’t want to think of where he’d be if he hadn’t called Mabel a few nights ago…

Stan pulled away and cleared his throat, “That’s enough of that,” he said with a wink, “Don’t keep your sister waiting, I’ll see you tomorrow, kid.”

Dipper smiled with a small chuckle and waved, “Night, Grunkle Stan,” he said as headed back to the car where his sister was waiting in the driver’s seat.

In that moment, Dipper felt himself the luckiest guy in the world.

* * *

_One month later_  
  
Dipper was starting to look at ads in the paper for some odd jobs to get himself out of his apartment when he heard a knock on his door.

Mabel was still asleep and she would have told him if she was expecting visitors. There was no way that it was Stan as he would have started shouting at them to open up by now.

Dipper walked over and peered through the peephole, his face fell in disbelief, “No…” he opened the door and stood at the person standing in his threshold.

He was holding a large bag and a deck of cards. 

“Hey there, Pine Tree,” Bill said with a small smile, “Long time, no see.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For fic updates you can check my blog(s): username amoresognare (personal) and yeysal (fic blog).
> 
> If you like Billford, check out my new series, Burn Out. It's got three installments so far!
> 
> As always comments are greatly appreciated!


	17. Home

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bill makes a surprising return and he and Dipper have a lot to talk about...

“Where have you been?!” Dipper said as he pulled Bill inside his apartment and shut the door, “Seriously, I want straight answers!” He grimaced when he took in Bill’s messy appearance. His hair had grown out considerably and was tangled at that. He also looked as if he hadn’t eaten in months. “Jesus, Bill where have you been staying…you’re a wreck.”

Bill looked around the apartment and set his bag down, “I’ve been all over,” he said, “But I never left the town.” He looked at Dipper with a wide smile that betrayed how exhausted he looked, “Nice place you got here.”

Before Dipper could respond, the sound of the guestroom door opening jarred both of their attentions, “Dipper?” Mabel said as she came down the hallway, “Who’s here…?” She stopped frozen in her tracks at the sight of Bill, “Um…”

Oh crap. Dipper put his hands on his head and gestured to Bill, “Um, Mabel, this is Bill,” he introduced, “Bill, this is Mabel.”

Bill smiled and reached to shake her hand, “Nice to meet you.”

Mabel regarded Bill carefully and shook his hand awkwardly, wiping her hand on her shirt after their handshake ended, “Same…um, Dipper…?”

Bill chuckled, “Let me explain,” he said in order to quell Mabel’s concern, “I’ve been staying in the woods,” he deadpanned before looking at Dipper with an excited look in his eye, “You know, a lot of those creatures from the facility escaped when the government tried transporting them? Most of them are out in the forest! I think the manataurs are forming some kind of coup…”

Dipper gestured wildly for Bill to stop talking. For once, the blonde was saying too much instead of too little.

Mabel looked at Dipper, “’Creatures?’ ‘Manataurs?’” she narrowed her eyes, “Dipper…”

“It’s nothing!” he all but shouted before turning his attention back to Bill, “So you haven’t had a shower or anything since four months ago?!”

Bill rolled his eyes, “Of course not,” he said, “There’s a rest stop not too far from here, I showered there when I had to.”

Dipper groaned, “Okay, well…ugh, and you have no other place to stay?” When Bill shook his head, Dipper sighed, “I can’t just let you go back into the woods…”

Mabel grabbed Dipper’s arm and smiled at Bill, “Excuse us, yeah?” Then she dragged Dipper into the hallway out of Bill’s sight, “Dipper…I don’t like this, I don’t know this guy but he seems kind of…out of his mind…you’re seriously not going to let him stay _here_ are you?”

Dipper recoiled, “What? No!” he said, “I was thinking of just putting him up in a motel or something for a few weeks…until I can figure out how to help him out. He can’t stay in the woods Mabel, he’s homeless.”

Mabel sighed, “Where’s his family? Does he have one?”

Dipper gave her a sad look and shook his head, “He…” Dipper leaned in to whisper, “The government doesn’t even know he exists… Mabel, he could use the help…”

“You know I can hear you both, right?"

The twins both turned to Bill who was standing near the hall entrance. Dipper blushed a bit but cleared his throat, “Um…look, you can’t go back to the woods…we were just talking about putting you up in a motel for a few weeks. That way you have someplace to rest. Does that sound okay?”

Bill shrugged, “I can’t exactly pay for things and I don’t have any ID’s for references…”

Dipper shook his head, “The motel in this town won’t care about that…they kind of need the business anyway.”

“How am I supposed to pay for that? Again, no money, Pine Tree.”

“Don’t worry about it,” Dipper said, “Now, we’ve gotta do something about your clothes…like buy you new ones and get rid of those…” he gestured to Bill’s dirt crusted scrub pants and shirt.

Mabel, who had been observing Bill suspiciously, sat down on the couch, “Bill, where’s your family?”

Bill turned in her direction and shrugged, “Don’t have one.”

Mabel hummed and sat back, dropping that topic, “So you worked with my brother? At the facility?”

Bill grinned, “I wouldn’t say worked as in the colleague sense but, the simple answer is yes, I did.”

Mabel looked over at Dipper with a scathing look in her eyes, “I see.”

Dipper didn’t like this, he knew based off the look in his sister’s eyes that she was going to want more answers about what really happened at the facility. Bill’s appearance was suggestive that it was more than just an ‘earthquake.’ Dipper felt himself getting a headache already. “Look,” he said, “I’ll explain later, Mabel, I just…let’s just get Bill looking somewhat normal…” Dipper looked at Bill’s bag, “What’s in the bag?”

Bill’s eye widened, “Oh! Yeah!” he said as he reached for the bag, “I got these for you…” He opened the bag and pulled out two journals, “I went back to the facility and pulled these from your office….”

Dipper had completely forgotten about the other two journals and he took them from Bill gratefully, “Oh…wow, thank you…but, how the hell did you get past Secret Service? Don’t they have the facility blocked off??" 

Bill gave Dipper a pointed look, “Please, Pine Tree, _really_?”

* * *

A few hours later, Dipper and Mabel had successfully packed Mabel’s car full of shopping bags from the small department store in the town. Bill was a little upset at the slim choices for eye patches but he settled for a basic white one saying he could at least color on it. He put it on in the store before they even bought it.

Their next stop was the motel.

Mabel was eerily quiet for most of the trip. Dipper knew that Mabel wanted an explanation and wasn’t too keen on her brother putting effort into helping someone she considered suspicious.

At one point, Bill had walked up to the both of them as they were paying for the clothes, “You don’t have to do this, you know…” he said mostly to Dipper.

Dipper shrugged as he handed the clerk his debit card. He checked to make sure Mabel was out of earshot before he looked at Bill, “Don’t read too much into it…I’d feel bad turning you out,” Dipper said as he signed the receipt and grabbed the bags, making their way to the exit, “But the catch is that you’re going to answer the questions I have about _everything_ that happened.”

Bill smirked, “Very devious of you, Pine Tree,” he said, “It’s a deal, then.”

Once they pulled into the motel’s parking lot, Dipper pulled out his bank envelope and headed to the front desk, giving the envelope to the clerk, “I need one bedroom for however long that will last me.”

The clerk opened the envelope discreetly and counted the bills, “Huh…well,” the man said as he checked the bills for counterfeit, “Hm, this will give you a month’s stay, is that alright?”

Dipper nodded and gave them his information. He informed the clerk that his “friend” would be staying in the hotel until he found a more decent place to live. The clerk shrugged carelessly and handed him the key to one of the rooms.

Mabel met them outside with the bags and soon, they were helping Bill set up his small motel room. Mabel looked around and gestured to Dipper, “What is he gonna do about food?”

Dipper shrugged, “We’ll go pick up some groceries that won’t require a kitchen,” he offered, “If anything he can come by and eat with us.”

Mabel placed the toiletries on the counter, “Well, I’ll go pick up some things now,” she said, “I need some time to think about this by myself…”

Dipper looked a bit taken aback but he nodded, “O-Okay, um,” he fished out some cash from his pocket and handed it to her, “Might want to get some stuff for the shower, too…that should be enough.”

Mabel hesitated but took the cash anyway, she leaned in to Dipper’s ear and murmured, “If anything happens, call me, I’ll get here faster than the police.”

Dipper chuckled and nodded, “Thanks, I’ll be fine.”

Mabel winked and after shooting Bill a warning look, she left.

Bill chuckled, “She’s a pistol. I like her.”

Dipper shook his head, “You have no idea,” he said as he emptied a bag of clothes on Bill’s bed, “Now…you. You should go take a shower…when you come out, we have to talk.”

Bill sighed and stood up, grabbing a few pieces of clothes, “Yep.”

Bill only showered for about ten minutes but we came out he looked a lot better. Probably better than he looked when he was still at the facility. Bill plopped down on the bed with a tired sigh.

Dipper sat down on the bed facing away from Bill, “So do you wanna start at the part with the portal incident…or incidents. Or the part where you’ve been living in the woods for the past four months?”

Bill laughed, “Well, gee,” he said as he sat up, “Which one’s more interesting, I wonder…” Bill hummed as he pulled his legs up on the bed, “Well, nothing much happened after I left…”

Dipper turned to face him, “ _Why_ did you leave…? I don’t understand…and how the hell did you survive after…” Dipper gestured at his eye, “…losing that much blood?”

Bill’s shoulders dropped as he sighed, “I literally kept an interdimensional gateway from shutting down, Pine Tree, losing a bit of blood isn’t going to kill me[AN1] .”

Dipper stammered, “I-It’s…it’s not that, I just…it’s…what exactly _are_ you?”

Bill groaned, “That’s the one question I really don’t know how to answer…” he said as he buried his face in his hands, “Really…I know so much and so little at the same time.”

Dipper bit his lip and looked away, “I’m sorry…” he said, “Just…I want you to explain to me what happened exactly…and no funny business…”

Bill looked up, covering only the lower half of his face, “Do you remember the dream I showed you? The one about the first portal incident?” Dipper nodded, “That’s basically all I can remember from when that happened…if that’s what you want to know.”

Dipper looked disappointed but not surprised, “So you don’t remember getting that orb thing that T.B. wanted?”

Bill shook his head, “I just _knew_ that it was not something I wanted him to have,” he said, “So I threw it back in.” Bill leaned against the pillows, “Afterwards, when I was being questioned by Ivan, I started seeing visions of the incident happening again…I saw that vision of you in the elevator, I saw the cards, and I saw the open gateway and you screaming at me. I didn’t understand it completely until I kept having those dreams whenever they forced me to sleep.”

Dipper was quiet as he processed this. So Bill knew what was going to happen to a degree…Dipper rested his back against the wall, “Go on…”

Bill shrugged, “Well, over the course of the decade…I kept having a variety of visions. Later, I realized those visions were different outcomes if something was done just a little bit differently. It’s like when you’re putting a puzzle together and you try to jam a piece where it obviously doesn’t fit. You could still leave it there, but the puzzle wouldn’t be the same…so I had to make sure I did everything correctly in order to stop whatever T.B. was planning.”

Dipper nodded, that explained why Bill said what he said when he met Dipper in the elevator, “So was it you that called Soos about the specimen being unstable?”

“Yes,” he answered, “You would have gone back in your lab and have been blown to bits…” Bill grinned, “You’re welcome.”

Dipper let out a humorless laugh, “Whatever…”

Bill chuckled, “Seeing you made me realize that everything was falling in the right place,” he said, “All I had to do was make sure you followed my clues,” Bill rolled his eye, “And you were pretty slow on the uptake…”

Dipper looked at Bill indignantly and grunted, “Hey! You didn’t have to be so exaggerated!”

Bill ignored him, “Regardless, even before you came to the facility, I made attempts at connecting with my old colleagues…mostly your uncle…but most of his memory had been blocked…he was difficult to access…” Bill looked at Dipper, “It had to be you.”

Dipper’s forehead creased, “He seemed to remember you pretty well…”

Bill glanced at Dipper, “No he didn’t…but it wasn’t his fault…” There was a heaviness in Bill’s tone that made Dipper suspicious but he wasn’t sure why.

Dipper thought back to the two journals, “Did…did you know Ford was going to be trapped in the portal?”

Bill took a deep breath and closed his eye, “Yes.”

That word hit Dipper like a bullet and he thought he was keeping himself composed. At that point, he hadn’t cried in over a week. Now, his eyes were burning and he couldn’t even bring himself to ask any more questions without risking the tears escaping.

Bill seemed to notice and spared him the trouble, “I’m sorry but there was no outcome I that led to him being safe and sound in this dimension…either way, you know there’s a chance he’s alive somewhere.”

Dipper sighed and put his face in his hands, “That doesn’t make me feel better…”

Before Bill could respond, Mabel opened the door with a two bags of groceries. When her gaze fell on Dipper she looked at Bill accusingly, “Alright, I’ve had enough,” she said as she dropped the groceries on the small dresser, “I want to know what’s really going on. I don’t care who explains…I want answers.”

Dipper looked between Bill and Mabel. When he looked back at Bill, Bill just shrugged.

Dipper sighed, this was gonna take a while.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So a few things to announce:
> 
> There will be no update next week since I'll be out of town for the holiday and my beta is super busy with school projects. That being said, this story is almost at its end....which leads to the next announcement....
> 
> There will be a sequel! It most likely won't be as long and it most likely won't be updated every week but it will be continued! I'm currently writing it now.
> 
> Also, if you enjoy Billford and are so inclined, I have become trash for this ship and have written a few installments for my series, Burn Out. 
> 
> As always, comments are greatly appreciated!


	18. Looking Up

“Are you sure you didn’t make this up? It sounds made up.” Mabel was lying on the bed next to Bill.

Dipper shot her a frustrated look, “Mabel!”

“I’m sorry! It just sounds so…science fiction-y,” she looked at Bill, “So can you really get into people’s minds?” Bill just smirked and Mabel’s demeanor changed, “If I see you in my dreams I will find you and I will choke you with glitter.”

Bill chuckled, “That…doesn’t sound as threatening as you’re trying to make it.”

Dipper shook his head, “Okay, look Mabel, I wasn’t supposed to tell anyone about this so please just…don’t say anything…I don’t want you to get into any trouble.”

Mabel sat up, “Don’t worry, Dipper…” her eyes found Dipper’s and she gave him a reassuring smile, “I’m honestly a little more interested in how you managed to keep yourself from finding out what was on those lower floors. Knowing you, I thought you’d at least try to sneak down there.”

Dipper laughed, “Security was a lot more intimidating…” he stopped talking when he saw a grimace cross Bill’s face, “Um…”

Mabel continued, “And I had no idea that the Soos who works with Grunkle Stan was the Soos you were talking about from before…he’s awesome!”

“Yeah…” he looked back at Mabel, “Um…Mabel? Could you give Bill and me a second?”

Mabel looked surprised at first but nodded, “Uh, sure,” she checked her watch, “Ah, I have to go check in with the manager anyway so I’ll just head back to your place. You’ll call me when you need a ride back?”

Dipper considered it but shook his head, “Nah, it’s not too far, I think I’ll just walk.”

Mabel nodded and gave a short wave to Bill, “Well, I’ll see you later. Call me if you need a ride.”

Dipper nodded and thanked her and once she was gone, he looked back at Bill and shifted on the bed, “Are you okay?”

Bill stared at the wall blankly, “I guess so,” he said softly, “What about you?”

Dipper laughed and shook his head, “Honestly? No, I’m okay.

Bill hummed, “Nothing you can do,” he said as he fumbled with the hem of his shirt.

Dipper nodded, “I know…it’s just…it still doesn’t feel _real_ ,” he said as he gestured to Bill, “Like, it’s strange seeing you here…and not in the facility.”

Bill’s gaze shifted a bit and he shrugged, “Sometimes it’s easier to believe it’s all just one long nightmare. You’d be surprised how easily you can convince yourself it didn’t happen the way it did.”

“Is that…is that how it happened ten years ago?” Dipper felt terrible for breaching that subject again even after he saw how it affected Bill. He wasn’t shocked Bill turned out the way he did.

The corner of Bill’s lips twitched slightly, “Sort of,” he responded lowly, “When you don’t have much to work with, you have to fill the holes in somehow…I actually read through your uncle’s journals while I was in the woods and boy, did that bring back some memories of better times...”

Dipper perked up at the mention of the journals, “That reminds me…the third journal.”

Bill hummed, “What about it?”

“How did you get it? How’d you hide it in the wall?”

 

“Oh,” Bill sat up, a wide grin on his face, “You’ll appreciate this! It was about five years after the first incident that I saw Ivan carrying the journal into his office,” he smirked, “So I managed to enter the mind of one of the guards and made him sleepwalk,” Bill shook his head, “It took a lot of energy out of me and I couldn’t sleep for days after that but I made the guard hide the journal in the wall…Ivan was furious but he couldn’t really pin it on me since I was locked up at the time it was stolen.”

Dipper, amused, smiled, “Wow…” he reached into his pocket and fished out Bill’s coin, “So what about this?”

Bill froze and stared at the coin, “I told you…I got it from the portal…”

Dipper shook his head, “I think it’s a lot more important than that, Bill. You said once that it was the catalyst that made you and I connect…what did that mean?”

Bill reached for the coin and turned it over in his hand, “Remember when I told you the reason I started calling you ‘Pine Tree?’” he asked as he ran his thumb over the symbol, “You’re the pine tree on this coin.”

“How do you know that?”

Bill shook his head, “I wouldn’t expect you to understand,” he responded, “I just know that every symbol on here represents someone important to me.” He pointed to the six-fingered hand, “See? That’s your uncle’s symbol…”

Dipper narrowed his eyes, “Did you help my uncle with his research in the journals?”

Bill nodded, “He had a lot of incorrect information in the first two so he gave them to me to read through and give corrections,” Bill gave a soft smile, “He mentioned you a lot when we worked together before the incident. He was really proud of you.”

Dipper gulped as another wave of emotion threatened to make him sob again, “D-Do you really think he’s still alive?”

Bill shrugged, “I don’t know…”

Dipper nodded, he expected as much. “I have one more question,” he said, “Well maybe not one more…but, about a month ago…I had gotten really drunk and called Mabel from a payphone,” Dipper studied Bill’s face as he listened, “Someone brought me home and gave me your coin because I dropped it…” Dipper didn’t finish his question, only stared at Bill expectedly, “Bill?”

Bill grinned and showed him the coin, “This thing came from another dimension, kid,” he said softly, “I had to make sure you were keeping it safe.”

Dipper raised his eyebrows in surprise, “Really?”

Bill looked at him incredulously, “Well, yes, I mean look at it, it’s solid gold-“

Dipper interrupted him, “No, no,” he said, “I mean did you really find me and take me home that night?”

A serious look crossed Bill’s face for a moment before he nodded, “Yes,” he said, “I said I would find you…and I did.”

Dipper shifted so that he was sitting next to Bill. They were quiet for a few moments before Dipper looked over, “Did you find me because of the coin?” he asked nervously.

Bill nodded, “Sort of,” he said, “I was really weak after what happened that night, so trying to make a connection to you through it was difficult…it still is.”

“Thank you.” Dipper was amused at Bill’s shocked expression, “Really, thank you for bringing me home…for everything…”

Bill grinned, “You looked worse than me,” he said in an attempt to lighten the mood, “At least you made it to the trash can…I think if you had puked on me I would have left you in the street.”

Dipper actually laughed, “I don’t think you’re as bad as you say you are.”

Bill huffed, “I don’t know,” he said, “You thought I was pretty bad a few months ago,” he grinned.

Dipper would have responded to the sarcastic comment but truth be told, he was sick of discussing the past few months. He was ready to move on.

He looked over at the small nightstand and grinned, nudging Bill’s arm with his elbow, “Wanna play a card game?”

Bill grinned and reached over Dipper to grab the card deck from the table, “If you’re ready to lose.”

* * *

_A few hours later_

“Oh come on!” Dipper said as Bill turned over the last pair of cards, “You’re such a cheat.”

Bill laughed as he collected the cards, “You can’t best me at memory, Pine Tree, even with part of my own memories wiped out!”

Dipper shook his head and smirked as he had an idea, “Hey, have you played Dungeons, Dungeons, and More Dungeons?”

Bill hesitated before he glanced at Dipper, “I. Love. That. Game,” he said in the most serious tone possible, “Used to play it at work before the incident. I actually played with your uncle a few times. He was pretty good.”

Dipper chuckled, “Well, he got me the game a few months ago, it’s at my apartment so we should play it sometime.”

Bill sighed and his gaze shifted around the room nervously, “Sounds great,” he said before looking around the room, “So what’s your plan? Am I just going to live in this motel until the month’s up or what? I can’t exactly do anything since I’m technically ‘dead.’”

Dipper stretched, “We’ll think of something,” he said, “For now, don’t worry about it.” There was a silent moment between them as Bill rearranged the cards and Dipper cleared his throat, “So my last question,” he looked up and held Bill’s gaze, “About the visions you showed me, with the burning cities?”

Bill bit his lip and nodded, “Yeah? What about it?”

“Was that the future T.B. was trying to obtain…?”

Bill stared at Dipper for what felt like hours, the look in his eye was serious and almost menacing. Dipper felt himself getting scared before Bill shrugged, “It’s definitely a possibility…” he replied softly, “It’s still overwhelming…these new abilities I have but…maybe one day I’ll figure it out…” Bill offered a small smile, “It might have been nothing…”

Dipper hummed, “Maybe…” He jumped when his phone started ringing. Mabel. He swiped the screen, “What’s up?”

“Do you realize what time it is?” she sounded annoyed.

Dipper checked his watch, it was nearly eleven, “Oh wow, I didn’t realize it was getting that late…”

Mabel groaned, “Dipper, the sun was up when I left and now it’s dark outside, are you coming back to the apartment or not?”

“Yeah, yeah,” he said, “I’ll head back soon, okay?”

“Okay, pick up some chocolate on your way back,” she said before she hung up.

Dipper sighed and pocketed his phone, “I should probably head out,” he said, “Do you have everything you need for the night?”

Bill rolled his eye, “Yes, _mom_ ,” he said sarcastically, “Go, before your sister kills me.”

Dipper laughed, “I’ll stop by tomorrow…” he said as he headed for the door. When Bill said nothing, Dipper turned around and looked at him, “You…you will be here tomorrow, right?”

Bill looked up at Dipper and gave a short nod, “Promise.”

Dipper opened the door and gave a short nod as he walked out.

The town was quiet and cool. The moon was bright in the sky and Dipper realized that it was the most relaxing walk he ever took in the last year.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> SO! Epilogue for this fic goes up next week! Hopefully by then I'll have most of the sequel finished. Key word is "hopefully." I won't give anything away but be prepared for the feels! (And Bill and Dipper's relationship developing ;D)
> 
> As a sidenote, I want to thank you guys for your tremendous support for my first officially completed piece of multi-chaptered work. Though it was finished a long time ago, I'm thankful that it built up enough support to keep me motivated to update it on the regular. Your support is also why the sequel is officially happening so THANK YOU SO MUCH! Your comments mean the world to me and the kudos are just as great! 
> 
> I'll end it there before I get too sappy!
> 
> In the meantime, go enjoy some of my other Billdip fics if you like! 
> 
> You can also catch me on tumblr! My username is yeysal (fanfic blog) and amoresognare (personal).


	19. Your Constellation (Epi)

_One month later_

 

“So this is the planetarium?” Bill looked up at the large building, his eye narrowed critically, “It looks better in your dreams.”

Dipper rolled his eyes and grabbed Bill’s arm, “It’s inside, genius,” they made their way into the museum.

“I hope it was worth the drive. Being stuck in a vehicle with your broken AC was terrible…”

“Well you shouldn’t have messed with the calibrator on my car,” Dipper huffed, “And it was only three hours.”

Bill groaned as they made their way through the museum to get their tickets to the planetarium showing, “You could have just asked and I would have given you planetarium dreams for a week or something…”

Dipper chuckled, “You told me you’d never been to one, Bill. So you’re going to experience the real thing.”

Bill huffed and crossed his arms in front his chest, “I don’t see what’s so exciting about it but okay, I’ll humor you this once…”

Dipper gave Bill his jacket, “Put this on, it gets pretty cold in there.”

Bill was not amused, “This sounds like fun already.”

“Quit being a baby.”

When they entered the showroom, Dipper was surprised at how many people were inside and he tried to quell the feeling that was starting to empathize with Bill. Dipper felt victorious as he located two seats, “There we go,” he grabbed Bill’s arm and lead him to the seats.

Once they were both seated, Bill looked around, “Yeah, at least in your dreams it’s just you…there’s too many people in here…and it smells moldy…”

Dipper scoffed, “Usually in my dreams you’re there bugging me anyway, this is fine,” he handed Bill a guidebook, “Besides, I’ve been wanting to come back here for years…so don’t ruin this for me, please?”

Bill quirked his eyebrow, “I thought this whole thing was for me to get the ‘planetarium experience?’”

“Call that the silver lining for you,” Dipper responded with a snarky grin, “Really, just enjoy yourself for once, Bill.”

Bill huffed, “I always enjoy myself, Pine Tree.”

Dipper didn’t respond. Truthfully he was tired of the bickering. The show didn’t start for another ten minutes so Dipper decided to look through his guidebook of the constellations.

When the lights went down in the theatre room, Dipper put his guidebook away and stared up at the ceiling. He glanced over to Bill who was doing the same. Dipper grinned at the fascinated look on his face.

Two minutes into the show and Dipper was realizing that his dreams _were_ a lot better. They were more calming even with Bill’s constant questions and random statements. Even so, Dipper was still relaxed in a room full of people and he took that as a good thing.

Bill gently nudged Dipper’s arm, “So which is better? The planetarium in your dreams or the real thing?”

Dipper glanced over at Bill and he couldn’t help the warm feeling that swelled in his chest. The lights were playing over both of them and Dipper could have been fooled into thinking it was a dream. He smiled, “This is pretty good.” He glanced down at Bill’s hand as he looked back at the ceiling.

Bill grinned as he pointed upwards, “Found your constellation.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next week I'll start posting the sequel so be on the look out for.... "A One-Eyed Man is King." :D 
> 
> Thanks for reading this journey! I hope I'll see you all for the sequel!

**Author's Note:**

> Comments are greatly appreciated. 
> 
> See you soon :)
> 
> If you have questions regarding the fic you can check my tumblr: amoresognare.tumblr.com


End file.
